Working Waterfront

Port of Portland welcomes new harbormaster and vessel

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… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Shrimp fishery moratorium continues

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 in December. Its goal was to determine the fate of the northern shrimp fishery, and besides the depressing news of… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

A half-century of fishing news comes to an end

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 trade newspaper, published its last issue in December 2025. CFN was founded in 1973 in Stonington, Maine, as an idea… SEE MORE

Marine

Working Waterfront

Here’s how to save working waterfront

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 that Maine’s coast has become a very desirable place to live, and many fishing families have been displaced from shorefront… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Leaning into fishing

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 a life on the sea. But Whytne Crabtree, a career education teacher, decided to take a different tack. Crabtree oversees… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Locals worry as Downeast marine facility goes up for sale

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 of many large, elegant summer homes and the Winter Harbor Yacht Club, which offers a hospitable welcome to visiting yachtsmen.… SEE MORE

Marine

Working Waterfront

From the ashes, a call to action

In my last “From the Helm” column, I wrote about the importance of Maine’s working waterfront—the people, the structures, the boats, and the businesses that sustain Maine’s marine economy. I asked you to imagine what it would look like if that critical connection between land and sea were to disappear.… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

On the record with lobster scientist Bob Steneck

Bob Steneck can now add to his already impressive resumé membership in the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. The work that led to that honor for the former University of Maine professor came from donning scuba gear and messing around with critters on the sea floor. Steneck suspects it… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Saving a Little Diamond shore

In September, I visited the small community of Little Diamond Island in Casco Bay to witness something remarkable: a shoreline restoration project marked by new science and sheer community determination. Hosted by Island Institute, the event brought together island residents, representatives from neighboring Casco Bay islands, and others eager to… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Remembering Susan Jones: A guiding light

The Maine fishing industry lost a guiding light when Susan Jones passed away in early September in Stonington at the age of 78. Her leadership shaped the fishermen’s newspaper, Commercial Fisheries News (CFN), for 40 years, from the early 1980s until her retirement in 2014, during which it was the… SEE MORE