Maritimetekers

NOAA Fisheries Awards 14 Projects in 2026 Sea Scallop Research Set-Aside Program

The U.S. sea scallop fishery is a major contributor to the national seafood economy. In 2025, commercial scallop landings totaled 23.1 million pounds, valued at $417 million

NOAA Fisheries has made 14 new grant awards through the Scallop Research Set-Aside Program. These projects support research that informs management decisions for one of the most valuable wild-caught fisheries in the nation.

Instead of awarding federal funds, this unique program sets aside a portion of scallops that would otherwise be available for commercial harvest. Those pounds are awarded to researchers who then work with the fishing industry to both conduct their research and harvest the scallops to fund the work.

1.5 million pounds of Atlantic sea scallops.

This year’s projects were awarded more than 1.5 million pounds of Atlantic sea scallops. At an estimated $16 per pound, the awards are expected to generate more than $25 million. Of that amount, $6 million will directly support research. The remaining $19 million will go to harvesters in support of small business owners and local fishing families.

The awarded projects

The U.S. sea scallop fishery is a major contributor to the national seafood economy. In 2025, commercial scallop landings totaled 23.1 million pounds, valued at $417 million—making it the largest wild scallop fishery in the world.

The awarded projects are investigating research priorities identified by the New England Fishery Management Council. This year’s projects include enhancements to existing scallop surveys, such as:

Expanded coverage on Georges Bank
AI-enhanced processing of survey imagery
Continued support of industry-driven data collection and co-management

Also new this year are two projects exploring opportunities for enhancement of scallop resources.

The research set-aside program is a model of innovation. It funds essential research without using federal dollars and builds strong partnerships between scientists and the fishing industry. NOAA Fisheries currently supports research set-aside programs for Atlantic sea scallops and monkfish.

Learn more about the Scallop and Monkfish Research Set-Aside Programs

A map depicting the locations of four scallop Research Set-Aside-funded surveys: The Maine Division of Marine Resources dredge survey in the Gulf of Maine, the Virginia Institute of Marine Science dredge survey in the Mid-Atlantic Bight and Georges Bank, the School for Marine Science and Technology DropCam survey in MAB and GB, and the Coonamessett Farm Foundation HabCam survey in MAB and GB.

All 2026 Research Set-Aside-funded scallop surveys. New projects include expanded coverage of the SMAST DropCam survey. The ME DMR dredge, VIMS dredge, and CFF HabCam surveys were funded through 2024 and 2025 RSA grants.

2026 Sea Scallop Research Set-Aside Projects

Institution	Project Title	Total Budget	Allocation (lbs)
Cape Cod Commercial Fishermen’s Alliance	Designing and Testing Dynamic Co-management to Protect Scallop Seed and Maximize Yield	$2,999,556	2026: 62,255 2027: 125,217
Commercial Fisheries Research Foundation (CFRF)	Sustaining and Improving the Research Fleet Approach in the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery	$1,529,523	2026: 49,560 2027: 46,035
CFRF	Sustaining ScallApp Use for Industry Tracking of Scallop Health and Reproduction	$394,250	2026: 12,320 2027: 12,320
Coonamessett Farm Foundation	Seasonal Survey of Scallop Fishery on the Eastern Part of Georges Bank	$3,000,314	2026: 92,402 2027: 95,118
University of Massachusetts Dartmouth (SMAST)	Important Extensions to the 2026 Georges Bank Drop Camera Survey	$317,261	2026: 19,829
SMAST	Interactive Effects of Food Availability on the Temperature Tolerance of Atlantic Sea Scallop Early Life Stages	$1,326,877	2026: 82,930
SMAST	Spatiotemporal Variability of Atlantic Sea Scallop (Placopecten magellanicus) Shell Height to Meat Weight Relationships and the Environmental Factors Affecting It.	$2,467,341	2026: 79,037 2027: 75,172
University of New Hampshire	Recruitment Enhancement Feasibility in the U.S. Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery	$3,075,328	2026: 54,940 2027: 70,329 2028: 66,940
Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS)	AI-Enhanced Processing of HabCam Imagery to Improve Atlantic Sea Scallop Survey Products for Stock Assessment	$1,713,701	2026: 52,522 2027: 54,584
VIMS	Monitoring Environmental Conditions and Sea Scallop Mortality in the Elephant Trunk	$1,661,806	2026: 51,143 2027: 52,720
VIMS	Assisting the Scallop Management Decision Process with a GIS Tool	$1,008,564	2026: 30,823 2027: 32,212
VIMS	Assessing the Viability of Spat Collection in the Southern Portion of the Sea Scallop Resource	$1,162,324	2026: 52,033 2027: 20,613
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute (WHOI)	Combining Biology, Ecology, and Physics to Predict Recruitment for the Atlantic Sea Scallop, P. magellanicus	$1,999,652	2026: 61,260 2027: 63,718
WHOI	Developing an Early-Warning System to Forecast Sea Scallop Mortality Risk under Thermal Stress	$2,661,104	2026: 52,430 2027: 113,889