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April 21
On the record with... Tom Meyers of the Waterfront Alliance
Tom Meyers has spent his professional life as an active member of working waterfronts. After serving in the U.S. Coast Guard for 28 years and as the head of the Portland base, Meyers then spent 13 years as a transportation and waterfront coordinator for the city of South Portland. While a senior officer in the Coast Guard, he was an…
April 21
A Maine power company: possible and practical
Put electricity back into the hands of ratepayers
As Maine grapples with decarbonizing its economy to meet ambitious climate mitigation goals, I urge us to think big and consider what a statewide, ratepayer-owned electric utility could do to…
April 21
Ships, the Suez Canal, and our three ports
Transportation by water will be part of climate change fix
Assuming I have your attention, I am now going to ask you to look up and around the room in which you are sitting. What percentage of the things in…
April 15
Halibut—a huge, thrilling, and tasty fish
Month-long season on this flatfish begins May 18
“Once you’ve caught a halibut, you’ll never be the same, if you like fishing,” said Erik Waterman, a commercial fisherman who lives in South Thomaston and fishes out of Spruce…
April 14
Federal flood insurance evolved, but not for the best
Congress has taken a piecemeal approach to a worsening problem
[caption id="attachment_24986" align="alignleft" width="300"] The King Tide in Camden.[/caption] In the February/March issue of The Working Waterfront, Peter Neill of the World Ocean Observatory suggested using flood insurance premiums to…
April 14
Is ropeless fishing ready for prime time?
Researchers already use this technology
[caption id="attachment_24983" align="alignleft" width="300"] PHOTO: COURTESY BLUE PLANET STRATEGIES[/caption] As the North Atlantic right whale population declines rapidly, regulators have proposed or enacted a series of closures of significant areas…
April 14
Our waterfronts deliver the perfect superfood
It’s time for a renewed effort to protect fishing access
Over the past year there has been renewed focus on the value of infrastructure. Transportation, health, information, electrical, and even the food system’s infrastructures have all been stressed, tested, and…
April 8
Peaks Island soliciting developers for senior facility
Recent survey showed strong interest assisted living
When asked, most say that aging at home or aging in an assisted living facility near home are the preferred options. But what if home is on an island, with…
April 1
Winter in a Tourist Town
In our latest photo essay from The Working Waterfront, photographer Michelle Stapleton captures the quiet time in Old Orchard Beach.
April 1
Fight climate change, but not with CMP corridor
Project will produce only profits and ‘greenwashed’ power
The December/January issue of The Working Waterfront featured a guest column by Orlando Delogu (“Maine must see bigger picture on utility project”) in which he questioned my motives on why…
Island Postcards
EPISODE 10: Keep the Light Shining
Two ambitious young women swam around the entire Island of Isle au Haut during the summer of 2019 to raise money for crucial renovations to the lighthouse.
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