Rep. Sarah Elfreth on the 'MALS Act' to Combat Invasive Blue Catfish in the Chesapeake Bay

The Threat of Invasive Blue Catfish

• 🐟 The Chesapeake Bay, the largest estuary in the U.S., is facing significant ecological and economic damage from invasive blue catfish.
• 📈 Introduced in the 1970s for recreation, blue catfish have become the most abundant biomass in many tributaries and have no natural predators.
• 🍽️ These fish consume about 10% of their body weight daily, preying on blue crabs, rockfish, and juvenile oysters, impacting native keystone species.

Economic Impact on Maryland's Seafood Industry

• 🦀 Blue crab populations in Maryland's portion of the Bay are at their second-lowest recorded numbers since 1990, with juvenile crabs at their third-lowest.
• 💰 The price for a bushel of blue crabs has surged to $400, up from $275 just ten years ago, directly impacting local economies.
• ⚠️ Federal regulations, specifically requiring USDA inspection for human consumption of blue catfish while other fish use FDA inspection, hinder market development and sustainable pricing for watermen.

The Bipartisan MALS Act Solution

• 📜 The bipartisan MALS Act (Mitigation Action and Waterman Support Act) aims to address the damage caused by blue catfish.
• 🐾 The act establishes a pilot program within NOAA's Chesapeake Bay office to create a new market for blue catfish in the pet and animal food industry.
• 💰 This program will incentivize watermen to catch millions of pounds of invasive blue catfish, establishing necessary infrastructure for transportation, processing, and manufacturing.
• 📊 Over a two-year period, NOAA will collect data on ecological and economic impacts, reporting best practices and recommendations for other watersheds.

Broader Implications and Call to Action

• 💡 If successful, the MALS Act could serve as a model for addressing invasive species in other watersheds, such as Asian carp in the Mississippi River.
• 🍽️ While eating blue catfish when available on menus can help, it's not sufficient to solve the problem alone.
• ✅ The legislation is a first-of-its-kind policy solution to protect the Chesapeake Bay's ecosystem and support its vital seafood industry.