Two acres of land at the Little Deer Isle end of the bridge to the mainland is now public property thanks to a vigorous campaign by local residents to buy it. An estimated 100 people from near and far gathered at the site of the former Sisters Restaurant on September 9 to celebrate the purchase
Slow but Steady Success for Sea Mammals
Gulf of Maine marine mammal populations have fluctuated wildly in the centuries since European explorers first reported seas teaming with cod and seals in their logbooks. Today, populations of many whales, porpoises, dolphins and seals that inhabit the Gulf are steady or increasing, due in large part to protections afforded under the 1972 Marine Mammal
It Takes a Village
One of the most emotionally-charged issues during the secession battle between Portland and Long Island in Casco Bay during the 1990s revolved around how islanders would cope with emergency medical evacuations that had previously been the responsibility of the Portland fireboat. The issue was especially fraught because it goes to the heart of what level
Darden Restaurant Chain Aims to Grow Lobsters
Darden Restaurants, which controls the Red Lobster and Olive Garden chains, recently announced it is beginning to raise spiny lobster through aquaculture, with the goal of supplying aquaculture-raised lobster meat to its restaurant affiliates in Asia in the next decade. It is the first large-scale market attempt to use aquaculture for lobster meat. The move
Fuel Board Okays Permit for 14-Story Tank in Searsport
The Maine Fuel Board has given a green light to erect a liquid propane gas (LPG) storage tank on Mack Point in Searsport. That leaves one less hurdle for DCP Midstream to clear before it can break ground for its proposed $40 million LPG tank. The project requires final approval from the Searsport planning board,
Water Access a Key Component of Economic and Industry Growth
Working waterfront interests in Maine have been very focused on supporting commercial fishing. In 2007, at a national conference focused on working waterfront preservation, there was a realization that working waterfront uses around the country differed drastically. One group, which is not considered commercial here in Maine, is the recreational boating community. We asked Jeff
Bear Island Design Assembly
Although most of us have trouble trying to define in the abstract what the term “sustainably” means, we also instinctively understand that islands are great places to experience what our lives become when we disconnect from elaborate, invisible and often incomprehensible systems that keep life humming along on the mainland. Island living confronts us with
Putting Together a Maine Maritime Museum Exhibit
Chris Hall, Curator of Exhibits at Maine Maritime Museum, learned about the ship, Dash of Portland, during what he calls the hunter-gatherer phase of planning the museum’s latest exhibit, “Subdue, Seize and Take: Maritime Maine in the Unwelcome Interruption of the War of 1812.” Hall discovered, and has on display, the June 1812 Letter of
MOO Milk Makes a Splash on the Fox Islands
In addition to championing their local lobstermen, the Fox Islands are doing their part to support another group producing a different Maine commodity: the dairy farmers behind Maine’s Own Organic Milk Company, a.k.a. MOO Milk. Islanders regularly stock dairy cases with MOO and use the company’s products to create café confections. Two North Haven filmmakers
Have You Had A Lobster Today?
It has been a strange summer for Maine lobstermen. The unusually early appearance of shedders (hungry new-shell lobsters that are coming out of hiding to find something to eat), the abundant spring fishing season in Canada, and large hauls in local waters are contributing factors to a record-low price paid to lobstermen for their catch.