May 13, 2022 — The Planning Board is drafting an aquaculture ordinance to regulate only large-scale Atlantic salmon and other finfish-farming development on land.
The move comes after the Maine Department of Marine Resources (DMR) charged that the town had overstepped its authority in a prior, broader draft regulating all forms of aquaculture on land and in the ocean.
Local seaweed and oyster farmers also voiced concerns that the initial proposed regulations could jeopardize their existing operations.
At their regular meeting Tuesday, May 3, Planning Board members unanimously agreed to limit the ordinance’s focus to finfish-related operations on land. A previous draft Aquaculture Licensing Ordinance would have applied to all aquaculture — whether raising softshell clams in nursery trays floating in a former lobster pound or growing seaweed in Frenchman Bay. That proposal contained sweeping standards and requirements from noise, parking and exterior lighting specifications to having an environmental impact statement study conducted.
Read the full story at The Ellsworth American