Abstract
Commercial fishing is a culturally and economically important industry in coastal regions across the United States. During the past 30 years, the average age of commercial fishermen has increased substantially. This trend is commonly referred to as the “greying of the fleet” and is attributed to a substantial decrease in the number of new commercial fishermen entering the industry. Fishermen training programs can provide the infrastructure needed to encourage new entrants into this sector, including training and matching entrants with captains; however, no comprehensive lists of these programs exist. We therefore sought to collect information on existing commercial fishermen training programs across the United States. Given the increased popularity of recreational fishing, aquaculture, and stewardship, we also included information on these types of training programs. We first performed a Google search to identify existing programs. Then, we entered program information into an online database, contacted program organizers to obtain additional information and insight, and mapped program locations. We identified a total of 27 programs. Program activity spans from 1981-present; however, 56% of programs were created in the last 5 years. The number of commercial versus recreational programs is relatively equal, and 6 programs are intended for both sectors. Programs are located in most of the coastal and Great Lakes states. Specifically, 36% of programs are located along the Atlantic Coast, 25% along the Gulf Coast or in the Caribbean, 14% in the Great Lakes, 14% in Alaska, and 11% along the continental United States Pacific Coast. Currently, no training programs exist in New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Virginia, South Carolina, Texas, Wisconsin, or Minnesota. Our findings illustrate that while a wide variety of fishermen training programs exist, additional efforts are still needed in specific regions.
