Hochul Seeks Federal Disaster Aid for Suffolk Shellfish Growers After Devastating Freeze

Great South Bay locked under thick ice for several weeks between January and February, and the damage it left behind across Suffolk's coastal bays is still being tallied. Gov. Kathy Hochul on Tuesday formally asked the U.S. Department of Agriculture to designate Suffolk County a federal disaster area for its shellfish aquaculture industry, citing an estimated $2.4 million in losses after a prolonged freeze halted oyster harvesting, snapped through cage and rack infrastructure, and damaged vessels up and down the county's South Shore and Peconic Bay shorelines.

State officials say many growers reported production declines exceeding 30 percent as thick coastal ice blocked vessels from reaching submerged gear for extended stretches. What the ice didn't strand, it destroyed: boats, cages, harvesting racks, and farm infrastructure suffered damage that will require costly repairs before the spring and summer seasons can run at anything approaching normal capacity.

"With freezing temperatures that lasted for several weeks, the Long Island coast saw ice conditions like they haven't experienced in years, leading to a halt in operations and damage to equipment that will cost the aquaculture industry millions of dollars," Hochul said in announcing the request. "I urge the USDA to take swift action to declare Suffolk County a disaster area and help our growers get the assistance they need to recover and move forward."

The timing stings on multiple fronts. Last fall, more than a dozen Long Island aquaculture businesses were awarded a combined $4 million in state grants to upgrade equipment, part of a broader push to expand the Island's so-called "blue food" sector, which spans oysters, hard clams, bay scallops, and seaweed farmed across Great South Bay, Peconic Bay, and the South Shore's smaller inlets. That capital investment in new gear is now being offset, in part, by winter-damage repair bills.

If the USDA approves the Secretarial Disaster Designation, qualifying producers in Suffolk and contiguous counties would become eligible for low-interest emergency loans through the Farm Service Agency. Federal rules give growers eight months from the date of an approved declaration to submit applications, meaning operators scrambling to repair equipment before summer can still apply well into the fall, provided Washington moves quickly.

State Agriculture Commissioner Richard A. Ball made clear the February conditions were unlike anything local growers had recently faced. "In February, with ice as thick as it was, they were not only not able to harvest their crops, but they also saw critical equipment severely damaged, costing them millions of dollars," Ball said.

The disruption threatens supply to the restaurants and markets that source from Suffolk's largely small, family-run operations throughout the season. With gear repairs still underway and the spring harvest cycle already compressed, buyers relying on local oysters and clams should expect tighter availability and some upward price pressure through the summer.

DEC Commissioner Amanda Lefton signaled the state is pursuing a second, parallel relief avenue, noting that the department is gathering fishery revenue data "needed to qualify for a future NOAA Fishery Disaster Declaration request," which would open a separate federal funding stream beyond USDA farm loans.

The USDA request now sits with federal reviewers. For an industry that has grown to account for a significant share of New York State's cultured oyster harvest, the response from Washington will determine whether Suffolk's growers enter the summer shellfish season with the capital to rebuild or simply absorb the loss.