Larus gulls. PHOTO: COURTESY LIAM TAYLOR

Working Waterfront

Study suggests gulls get a bad deal

“We need better reasoning. It may still be worth it to kill them, but not on the basis of foolish reasoning. No matter how much data you have you’re blind to your own biases,” he says. SEE MORE

A rendering of what the Belfast fish farm would have looked like.

Working Waterfront

Three coastal fish-farm projects dead or struggling

When three land-based fish farming proposals—in Jonesport, Bucksport, and Belfast—became public several years ago, they generated the expected support for their economic potential and opposition for possible environmental impacts. Early in 2025, none of the three proposals has broken ground; the Belfast project has been withdrawn, the Bucksport project's permits… SEE MORE

A rendering of what the fish plant in Jonesport would look like.

Working Waterfront

Fish farm futures unclear

Two land-based fish farming proposals—one in Jonesport and one in Belfast—are in legal limbo at the moment, while a third proposed recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) in Bucksport has let its permits expire. Since publishing this story in our print edition, Nordic Aquafarms has announced it has dropped its bid to… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

State needs to prioritize working waterfronts

Over the past year, there has been a growing movement to address the issues facing Maine’s working waterfronts—from Gov. Mills’ Infrastructure Rebuilding and Resilience Commission and Maine’s updated climate action plan, to the Working Waterfront Coalition and community conversations like those hosted by Maine Sea Grant on storm response and… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Brenna Cohen makes electrical connections

Name: Brenna Cohen Title: Community development officer in Island Institute's Center for Climate and Community Focus: The Energy Transitions Team collaborates with state and national experts to help island and coastal communities build energy resilience. We work to reduce power outages, boost the local energy supply to support electrification and… SEE MORE

The Fox Islands Thorofare in winter. FILE PHOTO: TOM GROENING

Working Waterfront

A community recovers by realignment

I’m thinking about how communities cultivate collective endurance for longer-term issues like the risk of saltwater intrusion, aging infrastructure in low-lying areas, and supporting livelihoods affected by climate. SEE MORE

Ice on the streets of Gardiner, approximately where the Hannaford grocery store currently stands. PHOTO: MAINE MARITIME MUSEUM

Working Waterfront

Ice made historic floods worse

During flooding events, ice floes can collide with structures, causing additional damage. This was notably the case during the historic Great Flood of 1936. SEE MORE

Harvested rockweed on the shore in Hancock Point. FILE PHOTO: TOM GROENING

Working Waterfront

Court got rockweed case wrong

Commercial rockweed harvesting in Maine is not “unfettered.” This is a scare tactic. All rockweed harvesting in Maine is licensed by the Department of Marine Resources on location, frequency, and technology. SEE MORE

Megan Robinson, front, and Jessica Lindsay weigh fish at a Machias Bay salmon farm owned and operated by Cooke Inc. The New Brunswick-based company has been operating in Maine for 20 years. PHOTO: COURTESY COOKE INC.

Working Waterfront

Downeast salmon business marks 20 years

The pens are scattered across a region that extends from Cobscook Bay in the east, through Jonesport-Beals, to near Swan’s Island in the west. The fish spend about 18-24 months in the pens, reaching a weight of about 12 pounds, at which time they are ready to be sold. SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Kelp collapsing on Southern Maine coast

The researchers combined several dive surveys of sea urchin and kelp populations with data on ocean temperature to model how and why kelp forests are changing—and how that varies along different parts of the coast. They found that temperatures have become inhospitable... SEE MORE