Maryland and Virginia ought to set the example here, yet there is concern that neither will make promised pollution reduction goals under the Chesapeake Clean Water Blueprint by 2025. Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, the states in the Chesapeake region (and we’re particularly looking at you, Pennsylvania) need to take greater action to meet promised water quality goals, principally to reduce nitrogen and phosphorus loadings. Bay states should err on the side of caution. Overfishing may not be the greatest concern here (watermen harvest around one in four of the target population), but it is the one most readily controlled. The state needs to double down on conservation efforts that spare female crabs. First, we must hold the Maryland DNR accountable. So here’s where Joe and Jane Registered Maryland Voter can come in. Others are much larger, like the growing “dead zones” of oxygen-deprived water and the broad loss of submerged aquatic vegetation which provides cover for young crabs from predators like those catfish. Some threats are straightforward, like the rise of invasive catfish that gobble up young crabs. Layer on top of that the level of fishing pressure allowed by Maryland and Virginia and the state of the crab habitat, where water quality and certain environmental hazards can make a big difference, too. Water currents, temperatures and tides near the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay at the crucial larval stage of the life cycle can have a major impact on juvenile recruitment in any given year. Maryland’s crab population varies greatly from year to year in the best of times. But let’s start by acknowledging that the issue can be complicated. Is there something that can be done to improve the outlook in the future? Absolutely. Obviously, the local supply will improve over the summer, but don’t expect a bonanza of affordable crabs or crabmeat at our doorstep. Right now, states along the Gulf of Mexico, including Louisiana, are producing a steady inventory so one can eat guilt-free, assuming you can afford it. Local chefs and seafood dealers don’t always like to mention it to their customers but the Chesapeake Bay is not their only source. Crabs and crab meat remain available - for a price. This spring’s crabs are simply last year’s modest population of young crabs grown up. But that surely proved no surprise to consumers fully aware of the current high prices for crabs - or perhaps recall that last year’s juvenile crab survey also produced historic lows. The state agency announced that overall crab stocks are at their lowest ever recorded by the winter dredge survey, which was started in 1990. The official word on this came recently from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. The bad news is that Chesapeake Bay blue crabs are running especially scarce this year, a combination of a cool spring that reduces crab movement (and thus prevents watermen from catching them) following a bad year for reproduction. The “+” and “-” buttons will let you zoom in or out of the map.Summer approaches, and it’s traditionally a time when a Marylander’s fancy turns to a dozen Number One Jimmies steamed. Click on the double arrows (>) in the upper left hand corner of the map to view the legend. True Blue participants are the purple dots. Find ‘True Blue’ Certified Partners on the Map Below If you are a restaurant, retail store, caterer, or other food service establishment that is interested in joining the True Blue program please fill out this application. How can you sign up? Contact us for more information. Participation is promoted through social media and the website that gets nearly 100,000 visits a month. Once a restaurant is signed up they receive a ‘True Blue’ logo to signify to their patrons that they are a True Blue member. The ‘True Blue’ program allows restaurants serving Maryland blue crab product to use a special logo in marketing or advertising the product. For years it has been an open secret that many “Maryland crab cakes” may be made Maryland-style, but not necessarily with Maryland, or even American, crab meat. True Blue, a promotion initiative from the Maryland Department of Agriculture (MDA), can help you to find out which restaurants are serving this local delicacy.Ĭustomers can look at a menu and know right away that they’re getting what they think they’re getting if the menu has the “True Blue” logo. It’s time to stand behind our crab cakes and crab meat and proudly support this local luxury. Only a small number of restaurants in Maryland reliably make their crab cakes from local crabmeat and the state does not require restaurants to identify the specific source of the meat.
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