June 2018 MAINE COASTAL NEWS Page 13. Commercial Fishing News M C F N


shift in the Gulf Stream,” Saba said. “In other words, there is warming along the Northeast U.S. Shelf and Gulf Stream region, and at the same time a cooling in the North Atlantic subpolar gyre.”


About the Models Used The researchers used NOAA’s CM2.6


global climate model to identify the char- acteristic sea surface temperature (SST) fingerprint associated with an AMOC weakening in response to rising atmospher- ic carbon dioxide. The model results were compared to observed SST evolution since the late nineteenth century. The CM2.6 model provides very high resolution, which means the realism of the model is greater than many other models currently in use. For example, the ocean bottom is more accurately represented in the CM2.6 model compared to lower resolution models. The study authors then used a group of


global climate models known as CMIP5 to test and calibrate a revised AMOC index. The reconstruction of the evolution of the AMOC from 1870 to 2016 reveals the record low in the past few years and is consistent with direct measurements since 1995 from a number of AMOC studies using diff erent methods.


NOAA’s CM2.6 model is being used for


a variety of fi sheries studies on the impact of ocean temperatures on lobsters, scallops, various fi sh species, leatherback sea turtles, and other animals. The model’s high spatial resolution enables researchers to look much


more closely at ocean features in regions like the Gulf of Maine or along the Northeast U.S. Shelf than other models, which have a lower ocean resolution and can miss the fi ner details. Present and Future Impacts of the Slowdown The rapid ocean warming observed


along the Northeast U.S. Shelf may be associated with the Gulf Stream shifting northwards and closer to shore, a conse- quence of the AMOC slowdown. In NOAA’s high-resolution climate model, enhanced warming of ocean bottom temperatures in the Northeast U.S. Shelf and in the Gulf of Maine is a result of both a poleward retreat of the Labrador Current and a northward shift of the Gulf Stream. Continued warming is likely to further


weaken the AMOC in the long term, through changes to the hydrological cycle, sea-ice loss, and accelerated melting of the Green- land Ice Sheet, all of which are causing the North Atlantic to become fresher and less dense. “If the AMOC continues to weaken,” Saba said, “ocean temperature along the Northeast U.S. Shelf is expected to continue its trend of warming faster than the global ocean, which will further impact fi sheries and living marine resources in the region.” In addition to NOAA Fisheries, authors


of the paper are affi liated with the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and the Institute of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Potsdam in Potsdam, Germany; the Complutense University of


2017 LOBSTER BOAT RACE CD


Madrid in Madrid, Spain; the Instituto de Geociencoas, CSIC-UCM in Madrid, Spain; and the National and Kapodistrian Univer- sity of Athens in Athens, Greece.


Maine Awarded NOAA Grant to Restore Atlantic Salmon and River Herring to Togus Stream


AUGUSTA – The Maine Department of Ma- rine Resources has been awarded $311,357 from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Species Recovery Grants to States Program to restore Atlantic salmon and river herring in Togus Stream. Togus Stream, a tributary to the Ken-


nebec River, once supported populations of critically endangered Atlantic salmon, as well as alewives and blueback herring, collectively called river herring. However, construction of barriers has blocked these species from historical habitat for more than 200 years. “Togus stream has the most and best At-


lantic salmon habitat below mainstem dams on the Kennebec River and has the potential to support runs of over 300,000 river herring annually into Togus Pond,” said DMR Sea Run Fisheries Director Sean Ledwin. The three-year restoration project will


involve Atlantic salmon egg planting at three locations in Togus Stream, installation of a fi sh way at Lower Togus Pond Dam, and


removal of two small stone dams located downstream of Lower Togus Pond Dam. Improved river herring runs provide


numerous benefi ts including the increased available of food for predators such as ea- gles, osprey, and striped bass during juvenile salmon outmigration to the ocean, which improves the chances of survival for salmon juveniles. “We believe that restoring all these


species will lead to more successful Atlan- tic salmon recovery by reestablishing their ecological roles in relation to each other,” said Ledwin. “Stocking eggs into a river has proven to be a successful way to promote recovery of Atlantic salmon. Access to habitat is equally vital for restoration of species like Atlantic salmon and river herring which spawn in fresh water and migrate to and from saltwater,” said Ledwin. The dam, built in 1804, blocked Atlan-


tic salmon and river herring from migrating upstream to historic spawning habitat. To rebuild the river herring population in the pond, DMR staff began stocking it in 2010, and in 2014 began manually transferring returning river herring over the existing dam with hand-held nets to facilitate migration. Two stone dams downstream of the


Continued on Page 21.


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