To the Editor: I was quite alarmed to read about Linda Greenlaws’ new venture promoting sword and tuna fish. Having been a mercury activist for 15 years one wonders if Ms. Greenlaw is aware the consequences of eating tuna and swordfish. I haven’t eaten either one since learning of the contamination to both. Unfortunately, most
Fishing Boat Diorama
To the editor: My goodwife Audrey and I always enjoy reading Barbara Fernald’s “Cranberry Report.” We have a few additions to Barbara’s last report that focused on Ricky Alley’s fishing boat diorama that he built for the Oceanarium. The first addition is about when Ricky built the first artful diorama (with its six model boats
Frenchboro Seeks to Formalize Mooring Management
In July 2011, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers told the town of Frenchboro that it must develop a mooring management plan for the federal navigation channel and federal anchorage in Lunt Harbor. Nearly a year later, town officials said its harbor ordinance committee expects to have a draft harbor ordinance—which will include a
Island Events Calendar
Island Events JuneJune 1, 6:30 p.m.: Swan’s Island — The Grand Opening of the Maine Community Heritage Project an On-line Exhibit of Swan’s Island History at the Swan’s Island LibraryJune 5: Islesboro – IIT Island Nature Walk: Great Blue Heron RookeryJune 11: Islesboro – IIT Island Nature Walk: Invasive Plant WorkshopJune 16, 5:30 p.m.: Chebeague
Something in the Water
Some island communities are cohesive, others less so, a few not at all. History has something to do with it, but size matters. An island with a very small year-round population can lead to excessive familiarity, which everyone knows can breed contempt. An island community with a large population can easily split into factions on
Reflections from an Islesboro Fellow
In the spring of 2011, after living abroad for two years, I began searching for work in my home state of Maine. I saw the Island Institute Fellowship on Islesboro, with the potential to work at the Health Center and Islesboro Central School, as a nice balance of community outreach, education, and life on the
Booming Elver Fishery Draws Passamaquoddy Fishers
When the price of elvers reached $2,000 a pound in March, word spread fast. Everyone who could fish for elvers did, including members of the Passamaquoddy tribe who fish with tribe-issued permits rather than the tightly restricted permits issued by the state. Elvers are juvenile American eel, referred to as glass eels. A catadromous fish,
The Value of Working Waterfronts
Working waterfronts provide the critical infrastructure that supports our rural, natural resource-dependent, economic activities, much like the saw mills in western Maine that support the timber industry or the grain elevators in the Midwest that support family farms. Maine fishermen know that losing access to the water means losing everything, from their income to their
An Eye on the Sea from Above
In August 2009, an Atlantic puffin left Seal Island National Wildlife Refugeand flew northeast, through the outer Gulf of Maine and along the continental shelf of Nova Scotia, eventually reaching the Labrador Sea. Then, at the end of January, the puffin flew south, almost as far Bermuda. In May, he returned to Seal Island for
Energy Subsidies – You Decide
Recently a friend sent a copy of an editorial from the Wall Street Journal, “Gouged By the Wind,” regarding the cost of wind industry subsidies to consumers. “With natural gas prices not far from $2 per million BTU, the competitiveness of wind power is highly suspect. If Congress allows a tax subsidy for renewables to