Category: Environment

Working Waterfront

Making sense of mackerel

In late May, NOAA Fisheries announced a new research initiative with the Northeast fishing industry to gather information about the Atlantic mackerel, a fish so common that it is often overlooked for research and so misunderstood that regulators have routinely miscalculated how many are in the sea. With the new… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Welcoming summer with Maine’s lupines

Like so many Mainers before me, I grew up with a well-loved copy of Barbara Cooney’s Miss Rumphius on my bookshelf. The titular character, better known in my family simply as “the Lupine Lady,” took on a sort of folkloric presence in my childhood. In the backseat of sleepy return… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

State awards funds and seeks proposals for coastal projects

The Maine Office of Community Affairs’ (MOCA) Maine Coastal Program (MCP) and Municipal Planning Assistance Program (MPAP) are accepting applications for approximately $450,000 in coastal planning grants through Aug. 31. Awards of up to $50,000 for individual applicants and $75,000 for group applicants will support local or regional planning projects that prepare coastal communities… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

The tall task of throwing away lobster rope

Lobstermen call it pot warp: the rope that runs from the buoy on the water’s surface down to the trap on the ocean floor. A single lobsterman may use miles of it. Until the mid-20th century, pot warp was made of natural fiber—Manila, cotton, hemp—that wore out, broke down and… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Casco Bay islands team up on erosion

If you live on or near an island shoreline in the Casco Bay region, you may have already heard about a local group of volunteers who have been working hard to raise awareness about coastal erosion and related climate vulnerabilities to our islands. This collaborative group now includes representatives from… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

An old predator poses new threat to lobster

This article first appeared in UMaine News. It has been edited and condensed. Michelle Staudinger, associate professor of fisheries science, is leading a new study at the University of Maine to find out whether lobsters are being consumed by a long-known fish predator, cunner, in a new way. These small,… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Coastal Maine eateries pilot reusable food containers

University of Maine student researchers are helping businesses in Bar Harbor, Bath, and South Portland incorporate reusable food containers into their dining experiences to reduce waste, through a pilot program called Reuse Maine. Participating eateries include Cafe This Way and Coffee Matter/Mother’s Kitchen in Bar Harbor, Solo Pane in Bath,… SEE MORE