Working Waterfront

Making a living from a changing sea

By Heather Deese, Ph. D. This summer I had dozens of conversations about the changing Gulf of Maine and how these changes play out in our local fisheries. Many conversations took place in community halls and theaters during evening “A Climate of Change” events featuring four short films produced by the… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Stonington, Blue Hill area fishermen want to close lobster zone

Zone C has shut down its open-entry system into the lobster fishery. The state’s lobster fishery is divided into seven management zones, arrayed in a line along the coast from the Canadian border to the New Hampshire border. Zone C is the third one heading from east to west, and… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

The problem is ours to fix, so ‘Open your mouth!’

By Laurie Sproul “So, open your mouth lad! For every voice counts!” Dr. Seuss’ logic, expressed in One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish, prods us to vote. However, in our complex world it’s difficult sorting through the issues. Take climate change. Sea level rise threatening sewer plants; salt… SEE MORE

A lobster boat cruises through Portland Harbor with the Nova Star

Working Waterfront

Tweaking a model waterfront

Imagine stumbling onto an undeveloped shoreline. Protected by islands, this mile-long waterfront has deep water at one end and a gravel beach at the other. If that shoreline were to be developed for various maritime uses, how would you organize it? Portland’s waterfront developed the way most have, with ever-changing… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Consumers willing to pay for sustainably harvested seafood

By Chase Brunton Maine consumers would be willing to pay more for food that is sustainably harvested and some may even be willing to spend extra for seafood harvested in Maine waters, according to a recent survey conducted by researchers in the University of Maine School of Economics. The issue,… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

COA is putting energy ideas under one roof

In 2014, students in College of the Atlantic’s Math and Physics of Sustainable Energy class traveled to the Southwest Harbor Public Library to perform an energy assessment. Led by their instructor, Anna Demeo, COA’s director of Energy Education and Management, the group measured energy consumption, analyzed placement for a potential… SEE MORE

In front of the Libby building on Congress Square in the 1970s.

Working Waterfront

Portland in the ’80s: ‘Yuppie go home’

Early in 1977, another new restaurant opened in the Old Port. This one on Middle Street had a tongue-in-cheek sign: “Carbur’s: Since 1977.” A tradition going all the way back to this year! Hilarious! The Cumberland County Civic Center opened then, too, a shrewd public-finance deal. In 1979, the Portland… SEE MORE

Tourists enjoy a stroll on Rockland's breakwater in late July.

Working Waterfront

Linda Bean goes coop, St. Croix Island erodes

It's close to 90 degrees in the Midcoast as this is being written, tourists are strolling the streets of Rockland and for most of them, it’s cooler than the air they left at home. Last week, the Maine Lobster Festival returned to town for its 59th year, and the U.S.… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

A dozen years of work on ocean acidification paid off

There’s something about the timeframe of 10 to 12 years. I’ve read that you can master something new in this amount of time—and ultimately, if you are brave enough, have four different careers in a lifetime. The field of sustainability studies has shown that system-level changes take an average of 10 to 12 years. At… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

New England climate could become predictably problematic

You won’t hear too many Mainers complain about this summer’s weather. It’s been hot, sunny and dry. Gardeners have had to work to keep their flowers and vegetables watered, but for those not in the agricultural business, it’s been ideal—a time to be outside to savor what we love about… SEE MORE