Offshore wind developer Vineyard Wind has appointed Caela Howard its fisheries liaison for Connecticut.
Howard has spent the last decade working closely with fisheries in Connecticut and Rhode Island, and in this role, she will serve as the primary point of contact for fishing industry representatives in Connecticut. She will report to the company’s lead fisheries liaison, Crista Bank.
“Vineyard Wind is excited to welcome Caela Howard as our first Connecticut fisheries liaison,” states Lars Pedersen, CEO of Vineyard Wind. “Caela brings extensive experience working closely with fishermen across southern New England, and we look forward to the insight she will provide as we continue building strong relationships with fishing communities throughout the region.”
Most recently, Howard worked alongside the fleet manager at the Town Dock in Narragansett, R.I., where she helped lead work on fishing fleets certificates, licenses, and state and government reporting. Prior to that, she worked as a contracted portside biological sampler for the National Marine Fisheries Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in the ports of New Bedford, Mass., and Point Judith, R.I. Her career working with the fishing industry began with the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection’s Marine Division in 2009, where she logged extensive boat hours seining, trawling, gill netting and drift netting.
“I am thrilled to join Vineyard Wind at such an exciting time for the company and their Connecticut-based proposal,” says Howard. “I look forward to using my background working with fisheries to build mutually beneficial relationships and maintain good lines of communication between the fishing industry and Vineyard Wind.”
Earlier this month, Vineyard Wind submitted its Park City Wind proposal to the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection in response to the state’s offshore wind solicitation. Part of the proposal calls for Vineyard Wind to fund research in partnership with Mystic Aquarium and the University of Connecticut’s Department of Marine Sciences to further understand the underwater noise generated by offshore wind projects and its effects on protected marine species and potential impacts on commercial fisheries.
