The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Sea Grant program will provide $2.1 million in funds to four aquaculture-related projects in the US state of Maine, the Bangor Daily News reports.    The projects, which are part of an overall $14m NOAA Sea Grant plan in 2022 to strengthen aquaculture across the US, include efforts to develop feed for finfish, improve Atlantic sea scallop hatchery techniques, diversify lumpfish broodstock, and advance the work of the Maine Aquaculture Hub, respectively. They will be led by researchers from the University of Maine Aquaculture Research Institute, Maine Aquaculture Innovation Center, UMaine Center for Cooperative Aquaculture Research and the Maine Sea Grant. 

"Innovation and diversification in Maine’s aquaculture industry have created new jobs and economic opportunities in our state," said US senators Susan Collins and Angus King in a joint statement, applauding the funding decision. "We welcome this investment from NOAA, which will support the ongoing, cutting-edge research by UMaine scientists and students. These projects will help to increase the sustainability and economic viability of aquaculture in coastal communities here in Maine and across the country."

The sea scallop project involves establishing reliable best practices for larval rearing and settlement protocols, identifying sea scallop hatchery microbiomes as they relate to health status, examining the immune systems of sea scallops larvae, establishing reliable best practices for sea scallop broodstock conditioning and spawning, evaluating the economics of commercial-scale hatchery production, and engaging with stakeholders to create a community of practice, according to a summary. 

The lumpfish project's main objective is to "establish a geographically diverse, self-sustaining lumpfish breeding colony using wild juveniles collected from the US Gulf of Maine," according to a summary. "During the project, researchers will capture young lumpfish, acclimate them in captivity for breeding, and then grow hatchery juveniles for stocking into commercial salmon pens."