Category: Business

Artist rendering of floating wind turbines.

Working Waterfront

Wind turbines banned in state waters

Gov. Janet Mills has signed into law LD 1619 which prohibits new offshore wind projects in state waters. The prohibition preserves state waters for recreation and fishing—where up to 75 percent of Maine’s commercial lobster harvesting occurs—and cements into law its priority of locating wind projects in federal waters in the Gulf of Maine. SEE MORE
A selection of Mere Point Oyster Company’s products. PHOTO: COURTESY MERE POINT OYSTER COMPANY

Working Waterfront

Maine Oyster Trail: Follow the shells

Many in the seafood business lost their way during the height of the pandemic. Now, one sector is offering a trail to a recovery. Actually, the Maine Oyster Trail was launched in 2017 by the Maine Aquaculture Association through a website—maineoystertrail.com. Afton Vigue, an outreach and development specialist for the… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Maine oysters are the pearls of the prairie

[caption id="attachment_27697" align="alignnone" width="300"] John Herrigel, rear, on a boat with Erik Kleven and Jennifer Lester, owners of the Bleu Duck restaurant in Rochester, Minn.[/caption] Given the distances and costly logistics involved, it might be easier for The Bleu Duck restaurant in Rochester, Minn., to serve its customers Rocky Mountain… SEE MORE
Maine Maritime Academy students work on deck on the training vessel State of Maine. FILE PHOTO: TOM GROENING

Working Waterfront

Brennan to retire from MMA

William J. Brennan, president of Maine Maritime Academy, has announced his decision to retire after the upcoming school year, capping off 12 years of dedicated service to the institution. “It is an exciting moment for me, but I really do have mixed emotions about the announcement,” Brennan said. “This is… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

State economist tells workforce story

Amidst a wave of bleak demographic news from Amanda Rector, the state economist, came a call to action. Speaking at the Workforce Pathways Conference hosted by the Island Institute (publisher of The Working Waterfront), Rector said workers here can find success by developing skills to match emerging employment sectors. “Job… SEE MORE
Ted Ames on the Stonington waterfront. PHOTO: PAUL MEADOW/MAINE CENTER FOR COASTAL FISHERIES

Working Waterfront

Ted Ames honored by Bowdoin

Lifelong fisherman and scientist Ted Ames was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Sciences by Bowdoin College on Aug. 14 at its delayed 2020 commencement. In presenting the degree, Dr. John Lichter, colleague and friend of Ames at Bowdoin, said that when groundfish stocks collapsed in the mid-1990s, Ames set out… SEE MORE
Green Moors Inn, between Portsmouth and York. PHOTO: COURTESY MAINE HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION

Working Waterfront

Maine’s Route 1: The tourist highway

When then-Gov. Angus King coined the “Maine… The Way Life Should Be” slogan, a friend in Belfast manufactured coffee cups that included the phrase on one side. On the other side, it read: “Belfast… The Way It Is.” If those Jeff Dobbs aerial videos in which stunning footage reveals the… SEE MORE
Vickie Ducharme, a member of Freedom Boat Club, poses with a trainer. PHOTO: COURTESY YARMOUTH BOAT YARD.

Working Waterfront

Boat club offers ‘fee for fleet’

The Freedom Boat Club has gotten more Mainers out on the water this season than ever before. “We saw a significant increase in members last year and into this continuing year,” said Steve Arnold, owner of the Freedom Boat Club’s Maine franchise. “COVID was a big push for people to… SEE MORE