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Select Board approves temporary rise in commercial scallop bushel limit to help fishermen recover lost days
Summary
The Select Board voted unanimously to raise the commercial bay scallop bushel limit from 5 to 6 for the remainder of the 2025–26 season effective Feb. 2, and authorized the shellfish manager to increase it to 7 if conditions warrant, citing missed fishing days due to cold weather.
The Nantucket Select Board voted Jan. 28 to increase the commercial bay scallop bushel limit from 5 to 6 bushels for the remainder of the 2025–26 commercial season, effective Feb. 2, with authority for the town’s shellfish and aquatic resource manager to authorize an additional bushel (up to 7) if field conditions warrant.
Andy Lowell, representing the Harbor & Shellfish Advisory Board, said the board has considered several options to compensate for days cancelled by cold weather and recommended the increase; he said the advisory board and the town biologist supported the change. Select Board members discussed the timing of any additional, short-notice increase and the legal and posting requirements for notifying fishermen of changes.
Tara Riley, shellfish and aquatic resource manager, told the board the fishery is "in a state of flux" but said available abundance supports a temporary increase to 6 bushels and that an effective date of Feb. 2 would allow fishermen to make up days lost to earlier cancellations. Riley said the manager could implement an administrative increase to 7 bushels later if data and conditions supported that change, which the board approved as part of an amended motion.
The board moved to approve the change, accepted a friendly amendment authorizing the shellfish manager to raise the limit to 7 if warranted without returning to the board, and carried the motion unanimously by roll call. Select Board members said they expect continued review of the fishery and that next season’s opening limit could be discussed in future meetings.
The Harbor & Shellfish Advisory Board noted prior concerns about dredge weight and said all scallopers complied with a 35-pound or lighter dredge limit at season start; the board reported that modern dredge designs appear to reduce bottom impacts.
The action is intended as a temporary, season-specific response to weather-related lost effort and will be monitored by the town biologist and shellfish staff.
