Working Waterfront

After the storms: Downeast coast rebuilds

The owners of Chipman’s Wharf, a seafood market, lobster buying station, and restaurant in Milbridge, had a brutal awakening after the powerful January storms wiped away their 106-foot wharf. SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

We asked, you answered

Earlier this year, Island Institute asked our readers for your thoughts and opinions about The Working Waterfront newspaper and the weekly online digest of Working Waterfront stories. As we consider ways to improve and expand our connections to those who share our deep commitment to the people and places that… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

When you can’t get there from here

One question that came up frequently among community members was if the 2-foot increase was sufficient. After all, the Maine Climate Council has recommended managing for at least 1.5 feet of sea level rise by 2050 and preparing for a possible rise of up to 3 feet over that time. SEE MORE

From left, new Island Institute Fellows: Mark Gorski, Lucia Daranyi, Thomas McClellan, Erin Dent, and Taylor Rossini. PHOTO: JACK SULLIVAN

Working Waterfront

Island Institute welcomes five new Fellows

Island Institute’s flagship fellowship program, which is celebrating its 25th year, welcomes five new Island Institute Fellows, two new community partners, and five continuing Fellows. The program brings recent college graduates to island and coastal towns to work for two years on a community’s public priorities. The new Fellows are:… SEE MORE

Luke Maker, 8, of Machiasport runs the family skiff through a cove earlier this summer using an electric outboard purchased through a grant from Island Institute, publisher of The Working Waterfront. Luke and is father, Ryan, fish for lobster. PHOTO: JACK SULLIVAN

Working Waterfront

Lobster season brings sense of normalcy

The 2024 lobster season has brought Maine fishermen something they haven’t experienced in recent years: A sense of normalcy. After several years of volatile price swings for their catches, unpredictable harvests, and increased costs for everything from bait to fuel, this year is shaping up to be unusually ordinary, lobstermen… SEE MORE

Visitors enjoy sitting on the town dock in Castine’s harbor area. The dock was destroyed by the January storms, but the new decking material will allows waters from storm surge to rise through while encountering less resistance. PHOTO: TOM GROENING

Working Waterfront

Building a better waterfront

But even as the storm raged, Harbormaster Scott Vogell was planning the rebuild. Rather than return the decking—which was the typical wood, an estimated 3-3/4-inches thick by 8-inches wide—Vogell inquired about new materials. SEE MORE

Sir William Cornelius Van Horne’s “.007,” ca. 1897, oil on canvas.

Working Waterfront

A painter on Ministers Island

David Sullivan’s Minister’s Island: Sir William Van Horne’s Summer Home in St. Andrews (2007) tells the remarkable story of this 500-acre island just off that New Brunswick resort community. SEE MORE

Jimmy Steele poses with the beginnings of one of his legendary peapods in a photo by Everett “Red” Boutilier. PHOTO: PENOBSCOT MARINE MUSEUM

Working Waterfront

Intriguing photo reveals a boat’s essence

I have always been drawn to unusual photographs. I love how the camera can take a slice out of the real world, which, once removed from its context, becomes a riddle for the viewer to figure out. I had this reaction when I first saw the accompanying photograph of Jimmy… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Community at the heart of resilience plan

Our community resilience plan was created this way, with residents offering what they had to give, their knowledge of history and place, their ideas and visions, and what they valued. SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Strategies for a climate-ready coast

For Maine’s rocky shores, offshore seaweed habitats and oyster reefs can effectively reduce wave energy. Restored kelp forests in Norway have cut wave height by up to 50% and wave energy by 70-80%, enhancing shoreline stability. SEE MORE