John Cooke

July 10, 2026 — President Donald Trump’s proposal to reopen the Northern Edge of Georges Bank to scallop fishing is generating optimism throughout New England’s scallop industry, though fishermen and scientists say reopening one of the East Coast’s most productive fishing grounds will likely take time and require approval through the federal management process. The Northern Edge has been closed to scalloping since 1994 to protect Atlantic cod habitat.

July 10, 2026 — The catastrophic 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster led to the splitting of the federal Marine Minerals Administration into two separate agencies – one focused on offshore leasing and production, and another on safety. Now Democratic leaders in Congress are sounding the alarm over the Trump administration’s move to reunite the agencies’ functions under one roof.

July 10, 2026 — Norm Van Vactor stands on the bank of the Wood River facing a mysterious looking grey box with blinking lights. “So that’s the habitat and the home for our ‘bird’, and it’s a completely self-contained unit,” he said, pointing to the box. At exactly 8:30 a.m., the box opens and a drone emerges. It quickly takes off on an automated flight path, flying to an observation position above the right bank of the Wood River.