Like many in Bar Harbor, Gail Gutradt will be somewhere warmer by the time you read this. But don’t expect her to be playing shuffleboard in Florida — she’ll be busy doling out hugs in Cambodia. Gutradt plans to return to Cambodia early in 2007 to continue working with the Wat Opot Project, a rural
Oyster growers balance safety, cash flow as they contemplate holiday demand
The demand for Maine oysters runs high during the holiday season — served raw at cocktail parties or chopped into turkey stuffing, whatever the recipe, the festivities translate into brisk business for oyster farmers. Brisk indeed — it’s cold this time of year. Winter harvesting depends not only on the seasonal hazards of differing sites,
Brunswick gets a public boat launch site, finally
After years of controversy, Brunswick will soon have a public deep-water boat launch. The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, which owns the Mere Point Road site, submitted its final development plan to Brunswick’s Planning and Development Department in late July. The department approved it, the Zoning Appeals Board upheld the decision in mid-September,
Right whales in Grand Manan Channel raise concerns as lobster season starts
The early November sighting of a large pod of right whales in the Grand Manan Channel once again brought to the forefront the dilemma of protecting the whales while letting fishermen earn a living. Lobster set day for Grand Manan fishermen was to have been Nov. 14 but a possible decision by the Canadian Department
St. John-Digby ferry saved for at least two years
A deal has been struck to keep the Saint John, New Brunswick-Digby, Nova Scotia, ferry operating — at least for the next two years. Bay Ferries Ltd. of Charlottetown, P.E.I., announced in late summer that it would halt service on Oct. 31. President and CEO Mark MacDonald said at the time that “increased costs and
CREST projects connect schools, students and communities
Eleven coastal and island schools participating in CREST (Community for Rural Education Stewardship and Technology) have begun work on three-year projects. Each project provides opportunities for students to utilize training in GPS (global positioning systems) and GIS (geographic information systems), web design, digital camcorders and producing ethnographic interviews. The projects will provide opportunities for varied
A professional illustrator pays her second visit to the Frenchboro school
York-based illustrator Jeannie Brett made a special visit to the Frenchboro School on Oct. 11-12. After a short afternoon presentation on the island last year, she returned to spend two full days teaching drawing techniques, sharing her own work and helping with the children’s Maine research projects. In what could become a more regular fixture
High Prices, Slow Growth In the caviar business, you’d better plan ahead
Some people think fish eggs are just that and should be left to the fish, strictly for the purpose of making new fish. For others, no cost is too high to pay for fish roe in its role as caviar, that elegant snack that symbolizes luxury, sales of which skyrocket at holiday time. And for
FISHERY FAILURE: The Tragedy of Mistrust in Groundfish Management
It sounds like a definition of insanity: attempting to rebuild fish stocks by doing the same thing over and over again, while stocks continue to decline. On Sept. 27, the New England Fisheries Management Council voted to pursue Amendment 16 in order to correct a management system that people generally agree is broken. While the
The Fish, the Fishermen, and the Government
For decades, the federal government and its regional councils have “managed” stocks of fish by limiting effort, telling fishermen they may only go out so many days each year. The results, everyone knows by now, have been catastrophic all around: fishermen have been driven out of the business, fishing communities have suffered, the stocks of