Md. crab project loses U.S. funding

Research has shown promise at raising population in bay

That made it different from the Oyster Recovery Partnership, the other major fisheries program for which Mikulski has earmarked money. The partnership's goal is to restore oysters both for ecological reasons and to provide economic benefits to watermen. It has planted nearly 1 billion oysters in the bay - many of them in areas where watermen can eventually harvest them.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration administers both the crab and the oyster programs. The oyster partnership, which received nearly $3 million last year, saw its funding cut nearly in half for this year. NOAA spokeswoman Monica Allen said that though agency officials were "very happy" with Zohar's work, the oyster program was a higher priority because it is trying to restore a species that has nearly been wiped out.

"The oyster restoration is on-the-ground work that addresses a really pressing need," she said.

Some scientists have criticized the oyster earmark after an investigation by The Sun revealed that the program spent nearly $46,000 in federal funds for a lavish dinner at an Eastern Shore resort and paid nearly $400,000 for watermen to move diseased oysters from one part of the bay to another. Several state officials have said the practice has little ecological benefit.

Allen said NOAA has responded to the criticisms by increasing its oversight.

Standing in his basement hatchery, Zohar vowed to try to find the money to go on. He has already accomplished more than many scientists thought possible, and he said he is not about to give up.

"The program must continue, one way or the other," Zohar said. "The Chesapeake Bay needs it."

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