October 10, 2024 - SANDWICH - On Wednesday, State Representative Dylan Fernandes presented $500,000 in funding to the Cape Cod Commercial Fishermen’s Alliance (CCCFA) to support Cape fishermen and sustainable fishing livelihoods.
"Fishing is deeply embedded in the history and identity of the Cape and Islands and supports thousands of jobs within the Blue Economy," said Rep. Fernandes. "This funding helps sustain local commercial fishing and support fishing families across the region."
The $500,000 earmark for CCCFA was part of a $935,000 package of funds Rep. Fernandes secured for the Cape and Islands during the FY2024 budget process.
“I’d like to thank Rep. Fernandes, once again, for supporting our traditional industry that contributes thousands of year-round jobs to our coastal economy,” said John Pappalardo, chief executive officer of the Fishermen’s Alliance. “We, and fishing families across the Cape, are grateful for Rep. Fernandes’ work on behalf of the industry and his understanding that commercial fishing – the original Blue Economy – is essential to our peninsula’s success.”
This was the second year in a row that Rep. Fernandes secured $500,000 for the Cape Cod Commercial Fishermen’s Alliance. Last year, the funds Rep. Fernandes secured for CCCFA allowed staff to secure an additional $5.786 million in 2024-2026 research awards, which will improve our understanding of scallop growth rates, the Outer Cape Coastal Current, monkfish, and will assemble the largest cooperative network of fishing boats and environmental sensors in the United States to cement the Commonwealth’s leadership in ocean observing. It also allowed CCCFA to provide free workforce training for the next generation of fishermen, training seven students to be new fishing crew members and preparing multilingual training for 14 Brazilian immigrants.
The FY2025 funds can now be used to expand collaborative data collection on fishing vessels, organize educational opportunities for commercial fishing workforce development, advance policies and practices to maintain the Massachusetts fishing fleet, and create public support for Cape fishermen.
####
