Working Waterfront

Portland pub owners recognized for Casco Bay advocacy

Rick Frantz and Jennifer Fox are part of Portland’s vibrant waterfront scene. They own Andy’s Old Port Pub on Commercial Street, and they take the ferry home each night to Great Diamond Island. Casco Bay is literally their backyard. On Jan. 23, as more than 125 volunteers and supporters of Friends of Casco… SEE MORE

A saltwater marsh like this one help absorb storm surge and provide wildlife habitat.

Working Waterfront

Maine’s salt marshes are disappearing

Salt marshes are disappearing. Scientists, who say these tidal wetlands are critical components of coastal environments, have been sounding the alarm for years. Salt marshes purify water, protect coastal infrastructure from storm surges, are nurseries for juvenile fish and shellfish, and provide important habitat for rare plants and coastal birds. They also link… SEE MORE

A scallop dragger at its mooring on a cold

Working Waterfront

DEP program helps fishermen, boatyards pay for new engines

It’s not every day the government pays for nearly half of a new engine for a commercial boat, but that’s the case for owners of some vessels. Since 2009, over 100 fishing boats, schooners, ferries, whale watch boats, and even a tug boat have been repowered with grants from the… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Free film, panel event: Plastics are ‘The Smog of the Sea’

The documentary film The Smog of the Sea chronicles a one-week journey of citizen scientists on a mission to assess the fate of plastics in the world’s oceans. The film will be screened for free at the Lincoln Theater on Tuesday, Jan. 30 at 6 p.m. Tickets, which are free and required are available… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Maine’s share of the VW settlement is $21 million

Maine’s share of the recent settlement with Volkswagen for the car manufacturer’s violation of emission laws is about $21 million. While the funds come with restrictions, the state Department of Transportation (DOT) worked with the Department of Environmental Protection's air quality bureau to put together a draft plan for spending the… SEE MORE

Workers harvest mussels at a aquaculture operation in Southern Maine.

Working Waterfront

Aquaculture, seafood processors share $1.7 million in grants

The Maine Technology Institute and Alliance for Maine’s Marine Economy have awarded eight grants to projects ranging from value-added seafood processing to seaweed aquaculture to shellfish aquaculture. The grant winners cover the coast from York to Washington counties. The marine economy grants and cluster initiative programs are financed by the… SEE MORE

Marine patrol officers Jonathan Varnum (left) and Alex Hebert (right) pose with Col. Jonathan Cornish after graduating from the Maine Criminal Justice Academy on Dec. 15. Having previously completed the academy's pre-service program

Working Waterfront

Two marine patrol officers complete training

Working Waterfront

Mark your calendar—Acadia offers four free days in 2018

The National Park Service will offer four days of free admission to all national parks, including Acadia National Park, in 2018. The entrance fee-free days are: Jan. 15: Martin Luther King, Jr. Day April 21: first day of National Park Week Sept. 22: National Public Lands Day Nov. 11: Veterans… SEE MORE

Environment

Working Waterfront

November is a time of waiting

As I’m writing this column, October’s been over for two days. I must confess to feeling a little let down. October gave us unseasonable warmth, an unexpected continuing glut of fresh tomatoes, and photos on social media of friends taking late-season dips in various bodies of water. It also went… SEE MORE

The remnants of boats destroyed during the Oct. 30 storm washed ashore near Belfast's breakwater.

Working Waterfront

‘Bomb cyclone’ explodes over Maine coast

Those of us who endured the Ice Storm of 1998, which knocked out power for days and even weeks for many, take a certain pride in having survived the ordeal. All other extended power outages were measured against that mother of “inconveniences,” as former (Belfast) Republican Journal columnist Doug Hufnagel… SEE MORE