- Division of Marine Fisheries
After 51 and a half years of service, J. Michael Hickey, DMF Assistant Director and Manager of the Shellfish Program, retired this past winter. With him goes a career’s worth of institutional knowledge that will be hard to replace.
Mike began his career with DMF in June of 1968 as an Assistant Marine Fisheries Biologist protecting salt marsh through the Division’s issuance of permits for coastal wetlands alteration projects. In late 1969, he transferred to the Estuarine Research Program, where he co-authored estuarine reports for Wellfleet Harbor and Taunton River-Mount Hope Bay, before being promoted to Marine Fisheries Biologist and Project Leader for a new shellfish technical assistance project in February 1972. When the federal funding for this project sunset in 1980 and DMF assumed its full responsibility, Mike was promoted to Senior Marine Fisheries Biologist. The Division’s role in providing technical assistance on shellfish management and propagation to coastal municipalities under this project would later be merged with a newly assigned authority for the sanitary classification of shellfish growing waters for public health protection in 1988, forming the basis of the Division’s current day Shellfish Sanitation and Management Program. With a new focus on compliance with National Shellfish Sanitation Program (NSSP) requirements, the Shellfish Program grew in personnel and Mike was promoted to Chief Marine Fisheries Biologist and Program Manager.
Over the years, Mike was active in various shellfish organizations at the state, interstate, and national level. He is considered one of the founders of the Interstate Shellfish Sanitation Conference (ISSC), having been involved in interstate discussions in 1977–1981 to oppose a 1975 proposal by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to make the NSSP a federal regulation rather than a federal-state-industry cooperative program, and having been present as a MA delegate at the states’ 1982 meeting that resulted in its inception. He was elected to represent all state shellfish regulatory agencies in ME, NH, MA, and RI on the ISSC Executive Board in 1984, a position that he held uninterrupted until after his retirement. He also served as Chairman of the ISSC Executive Board during 1997–2001 and again during 2008–2013, making him the longest-serving board member and board chair person. During his involvement with the ISSC, he was a regular member or chairperson of various task forces, committees, and workgroups dealing with all aspects of the NSSP. These included Vibro illnesses prevention, biotoxins, aquaculture, enforcement, FDA state program evaluations, and a complete rewrite of the NSSP Model Ordinance that nationally and internationally regulates shellfish safety. Mike was also the DMF advisor to the Massachusetts Shellfish Officers Association’s Board of Directors, a twice-elected president of the Northeast Shellfish Sanitation Association, and the Division designated point of contact for chemical and/or oil discharges or spills.
Mike plans to enjoy his retirement traveling with his wife Suzanne once COVID-19 subsides, using his new boat, fishing, working on projects around the house and yard including gardening, doing some hunting, and just relaxing in his new teak lounge chair that was a retirement gift. His expertise, historical knowledge, persistence, and good humor will be missed. All of us at DMF wish him the best in retirement.
