New England Shellfish Areas Closed due to Red Tide

On October 18, 2005, at the request of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), NOAA Fisheries took emergency action to close certain New England waters due to the presence of a toxin that causes paralytic shellfish poisoning. The FDA has recently renewed this recommendation based on current oceanographic conditions and alga sampling data. These data suggest that the northern section of the Temporary Paralytic Shellfish Poison Closure Area should remain closed to the harvest of bivalve molluscan shellfish, and that the southern area should remain closed to the harvest of whole or roe-on scallops. Therefore, a new temporary rule has extended these closures through June 30, 2007. A map of the affected area is available online.