Maine’s busiest and most diverse port has a new harbormaster as well as a new, 25-foot vessel for his office to use. Paul Plummer started as the Port of Portland’s harbormaster in mid-November after eight years in the same role in Harpswell. On the surface, Harpswell and Portland might appear to be opposites, but Plummer said the two ports have…

It's hard to manage a fishery with little data. It's hard to collect data with few people. I attended the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission shrimp fishery meeting in Portland…

A longer version of this piece appeared in the last issue of Commercial Fisheries News, which ceased publication at the end of 2025. Commercial Fisheries News, the Northeast’s commercial fishing…

Earlier this fall, I took the train down to New York for a few days to join in on Climate Week—a collection of events organized by the non-profit Climate Group…

Maine entered the 2025 legislative session with housing at the top of its policy agenda. For years, Mainers have grappled with unaffordable rents, scarce housing availability for working families, and regulatory barriers…

In hindsight, I wonder if the name I chose for this column was too wishful. I took the phrase “Sweetest in the Gale” from Emily Dickinson’s poem, “‘Hope’ is the…

Many people and organizations in Maine, including the publishers of this paper, have rightfully sounded the alarm about the loss of working waterfront along the coast. What is obvious is…

For years, teachers and guidance counselors at the Charles M. Sumner Learning Campus in Sullivan worked diligently to give students who fish a broader outlook on possible occupations other than…

Most people clearly remember the first time they met Peter Willauer. I certainly do. An imposing 6-foot-2-inch figure, Willauer looked like he walked out of the movie Captains Courageous.  A…

Much like ancient Gaul, Winter Harbor on the Downeast coast is divided into three parts, at least when approached from the water. To the west lies Grindstone Neck, the site…