CHAPTER 14 



Table 14-1 — Comparison of New Jersey's 1976 commercial landings wilh past harvests 



Bluefish 



Cod 



Croakers 



Flounder, blackback 



Fluke 



Hake, red 



Hake, while 



King whiting 



Scup 



Sea bass 



Striped bass 



Tautog 



Weakfish 



Whiting 



Crabs, rock 



Lobsters 



Clams, surf 



Scallops, sea 



Table 14-2. — Losses in the commercial finfish induslry 



Port 



Did kill 



affect 



business? 



Value 



of 

 decline 



Was crew 



income 



affected? 



How was 



income 



affected? 



Belford 

 Monmouth 

 Ft. Pleasant 

 Pt. Pleasant 

 Pt. Pleasant 

 Barnegat Light 

 Brigantine 

 Atlantic City 

 Atlantic City 

 Ocean City 

 Sea Isle City 

 Cape May 

 Cape May 



yes 

 no 

 no 

 yes 

 yes 

 yes 

 yes 

 yes 

 yes 

 yes 

 no 

 no 

 no 



minor 

 

 



$15,000 

 no est. given 

 $ 6.0(H1 

 $40,000 

 $40,000 

 no est. given 

 $4(1,000 















no 

 no 

 no 

 yes 

 yes 

 yes 

 yes 

 yes 

 yes 

 yes 

 no 

 no 

 no 



reduced income 

 reduced salary 

 1 unemployed 

 reduced salary 

 reduced income 

 reduced income 

 decreased salary 



Surf Clam 



Ropes and Chang (1977) estimated that New Jersey's 

 offshore (beyond 5 km of the coast) surf clam resource 

 was 210,000 t of meats in spring 1976. Dredge surveys in 

 September 1976 indicated that anoxic water conditions 

 destroyed 140,000 t or 69 percent of the offshore stock. 



Calculation of the potential economic value of the lost 

 resource depends largely on the price per kilogram. The 

 dockside value before the fishkill, January to June of 1976, 

 was $0.53 to $1.19 per kilogram. Using this range, the 

 estimated dockside value of the offshore standing crop 

 lost through mortality was $76 million to $170 million, 

 with an average of $123 million. 



Haskin (personal communication) reported that the 

 mortality of the inshore surf clam stocks was not as severe ; 

 about 1,500 t of clam meat resources were lost. The es- 

 timated dockside value of the lost inshore resource was 

 $800,000 to $1.8 million; the average was $1.4 million. 



Thus, the total potential dockside losses to inshore and 

 offshore stocks combined were $77 million to $170 million, 

 with an average of $120 million. Estimated potential losses 

 to processors and marketers of surf clams were $190 mil- 

 lion to $430 million, with an average of $310 million. The 

 total potential loss, based on the averages, was estimated 

 at $430 million. 



Because surf clams generally reach market size in about 



317 



