Volunteers pitch in to work on the store building.

Working Waterfront

Lots in store for Isle au Haut’s store

By Molly Siegel It is a clear September day and the sounds of paint scrapers, nail guns, and hammers ring out across the Isle au Haut Thorofare. Volunteers have been working for two days to make much-needed improvements to the community’s Island Store Co-op. With tasks ranging from stripping old… SEE MORE

The setting sun strikes the rocks on the island’s sheer

Working Waterfront

Canada’s Grand Manan Island beckons tourists

KELLI PARK Women harvest dulce on the island’s western shore. KELLI PARK One of Grand Manan’s fishing weirs. STORY and PHOTOS by KELLI PARK There are places that live in our imaginations and seem just beyond our reach. If you’ve been to easternmost Maine and looked across the water, you… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Former Google employee launches seaweed tea business

By Stephanie Bouchard If you were Josh Rogers’ childhood friend, you probably were offered dried dulse instead of Doritos chips for a snack. The red seaweed is today a trendy health food, but in the 1980s in Auburn, his friends thought it was “totally bizarre.” Rogers hasn’t given up trying… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

MDI lab sees break-through in regenerative medicine

PHOTO: COURTESY MDI BIOLOGICAL LABORATORY Kevin Strange, Ph.D., CEO of Novo Biosciences in Bar Harbor. By Tom Groening Two scientists walk into a bar. It’s not the start of a joke, but someday, it may be marked as the start of a break-through in regenerative medicine. Work that began at… SEE MORE

Ocean Approved's kelp lease site off Chebeague Island.

Working Waterfront

When kelp met mussel…

By Susie Arnold Without a doubt, aquaculture is a major growth industry in the state. And it is not just about finfish. Shellfish and seaweed farming are on the rise. A recent market study, commissioned by the Gulf of Maine Research Institute, found that Maine has the potential to become… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Ellsworth adds walkability to residential, commercial upgrades

By Laurie Schreiber Ellsworth is experiencing a surge of development propelled both by the city and commercial interests. The Jackson Laboratory recently opened its new mouse production facility in a former Lowe’s building that was repurposed with state-of-the-art infrastructure and technology. Attracted in part by the promise of several hundred… SEE MORE

Bajupa at Journey's End boatyard in Rockland.

Working Waterfront

The story of Bajupa is the story of lobstering and Matinicus

This story first appeared in Landings,the monthly publication of the Maine Lobstermen’s Community Alliance, and appears here with permission. By Melissa Waterman It’s rare to find a boat that nearly every fisherman would term “pretty,” but in the case of Bajupa, that phrase rings true. Built in 1946 by Robert Rich,… SEE MORE

Women document their visit to the Cranberry Isles.

Working Waterfront

Early numbers show tourism generally up statewide

By Laurie Schreiber To date, 2018 has been a generally strong tourist year, up from 2017 and continuing a positive trend of the past decade. “In a recent survey of our members, 86 percent said it was better than last year or at least as good, and last year was… SEE MORE

Business

Working Waterfront

Energy policy question draws contrast in gubernatorial forum

By Tom Groening Pundits have characterized Maine’s four-way gubernatorial campaign as low-key, and the nature of an Oct. 4 candidate forum in Rockland bore out that observation. Independents Alan Caron and Terry Hayes were joined by Democrat Janet Mills and Republican Shawn Moody on the stage of The Strand… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Swan’s Island looks to diversified ocean economy

DALE JOYCE/HARBORVIEW STUDIO Jason and Jamie Matthews. By Jennifer Helman Ask a financial expert for the key to a successful portfolio and the response will be “diversification.” Having a wide range of products in your portfolio helps hedge against downturns in specific markets. The same is true for the… SEE MORE