Gloucester seeks to broaden maritime base

Mass Innovations, From The Beacon, March 2013

Gloucester, famous for its fishing industry, is charting a multifaceted strategy designed to keep its port economically viable for many decades to come.

The approach, discussed during a daylong conference in the city on Feb. 7, seeks to help commercial fishermen adapt to the reality of stringent federal groundfish restrictions while also promoting emerging port-related industries such as marine research, ocean robotics, and “green chemistry” – an emerging field that is creating environmentally friendly alternatives to common household and industrial products.

“As we think about ports in transition,” Mayor Carolyn Kirk said during the conference’s opening remarks, “we also ask ourselves two essential questions: What is the next generation of ocean opportunity? And what is the economic impact in terms of jobs and investments for port cities like Gloucester that are represented by new ocean opportunities?”

Kirk added, “We know there is a critical mass of commercial activity that needs to occur in order to protect the assets that make up a working port. We also know that our fleet is vastly smaller than it was just a generation ago. So we’ve begun looking for ways to diversify our economy in ways compatible with the commercial fishing industry.”

A previous conference, in late 2011, was designed to lay the groundwork for a partnership among maritime institutions such as the Gloucester-based Northeast Seafood Coalition and the University of Massachusetts, which operates a marine research center in the city, according to Sarah Garcia, Gloucester’s director of harbor planning and development.

“A working port has that unique ability: You’re not working in your own institutions,” Garcia said. “Cross-collaboration is possible, when you get around the edge of the ocean.”

At least one potential collaboration emerged during the conference. A machinist whose shop is on the waterfront got to talking with two engineering professors from Olin College in Needham, who had given a presentation about robot technology that could be used for purposes such as harvesting shellfish farms and maintaining offshore wind-power installations. The machinist, who specializes in durable precision instruments, may have found a future source of business, according to Garcia.

Fishermen, and seafood processors, discussed shipping and marketing strategies, such as promoting under-utilized seafood such as monkfish, dogfish and skate, each of which was served during the conference’s lunch. A representative of a local company that makes organic fertilizer from fish entrails also spoke.

Steve Goodwin, dean of the University of Massachusetts’ College of Natural Sciences, said that researchers at the Pelagic Research Center in Gloucester would work with fishermen “to gain scientific evidence that can be used for good decision-making” in fisheries management.

Amy Cannon, the executive director of Beyond Benign, a Wilmington-based organization that promotes environmentally friendly chemistry, described ocean resources for non-hazardous versions of products such as dyes and cleansers.

Cannon also discussed “biomimicry” – the study of forms and processes found in nature as a means of inspiring human design and innovation. Among her many examples was the ability of mussels to hold fast to submerged rocks, a trait that Cannon said could lead to the development of strong, non-toxic adhesives.

Thomas Balf, the director of the marine science center Maritime Gloucester, described a recent exhibit the center hosted called “The Story of Bottom Paint.” Barnacle-resistant paint, invented in Gloucester in 1863, has traditionally included toxins that are harmful to sea life. Some states, including Washington and California, have banned or are considering banning copper-based bottom paint on most boats.

Balf said that while he was listening to Cannon’s presentation, it occurred to him that biomimicry might hold promise for an environmentally friendly version of bottom paint.

For more information, contact Sarah Garcia at (978) 281-9781.