A Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch program draft assessment downgrades the eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica) caught in the Chesapeake Bay “avoid,” drawing criticism from scientists, officials, conservationists, and fishers.
The draft report rated wild-caught oysters in the U.S. states of Maryland and Virginia harvested both with hand implements and towed dredges as seafood to avoid, citing a “high concern” for the status of the stock and of the management of the fishery.
Seafood Watch’s draft assessment said the fishery experienced “a notable decline in abundance” and that the reference points for stock assessments in Maryland were based on periods of “historically low abundance.”…