Working Waterfront

Financial hacks for fishermen

A version of this column first appeared in Landings, the newsletter of the Maine Lobstermen’s Community Alliance and is reprinted here with permission. Thinking about a new boat? Knowing how to pay for it is important. To help fishermen better understand financial management, the Vinalhaven Coop brought some experts from… SEE MORE

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

The Toll of the Sea memorial on Chebeague Island.

Working Waterfront

Chebeague dedicates ‘Toll of the Sea’ memorial

Islanders know first-hand the inherent dangers of living and working around the sea. Many have survived close calls on the water, but have also lost family and friends. So it is not surprising that more than 220 people turned out to attend the dedication of Chebeague’s Toll of the Sea… 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

Maine on glass: New book collects stunning early 20th century images

Maine on Glass: The Early Twentieth Century in Glass Plate Photography is the joint effort of Kevin Johnson, Penobscot Marine Museum’s Photo Archivist; W.H. Bunting, Maine’s foremost interpreter of historic images; and Earl G. Shettleworth Jr., Maine State Historian. This book uses images from the Eastern Illustrating & Publishing Company… 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

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

Working Waterfront

New boat for Isle au Haut, Stonington run

The Otter has replaced the Mink. No, it’s not spy code language, but rather the big news on the Stonington and Isle au Haut waterfronts. The nonprofit Isle au Haut Boat Services put the new Otter into service in August, replacing the long-serving Mink, which will remain as the winter… SEE MORE