Saving Seafood

MAINE: Kelp farming off Maine waters could help to contribute to environmental sustainability

May 29, 2024 — Maine leads the nation in seaweed farming.

Kelp farms are located across several areas off Maine’s coast, including Casco Bay and the Midcoast.

Keith Miller of South Thomaston is a pioneer in kelp farming. He’s been fishing for decades and operates several kelp farms. He grows, harvests, and then sells his kelp to the seaweed farming company Atlantic Sea Farms, based in Biddeford.

Kelp is a winter crop, which means it grows best between November and April. Miller and his crew have another week or so to harvest the crop before it’s time to get ready for lobstering season.

Read the full article at WMTW

Feds grant Maine a lease for offshore wind research project

May 29, 2024 — The federal government has granted the state of Maine a lease for a floating offshore wind research station nearly 30 miles off the southern coast.

The dozen turbines located southeast of Portland would be the first floating, offshore wind research site ever deployed in federal waters. The administration of Gov. Janet Mills requested the lease from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) in 2021, kicking off a multi-year process that involved an environmental assessment, public meetings and engagement with the commercial fishing community.

The stated goal of the research project is to study the technology and how it interacts with the surrounding environment and marine life as well as ways to reduce potential conflicts with existing uses, such as commercial fishing. The research could then influence development of commercial-scale offshore wind in the Gulf of Maine, which Mills has made a critical piece of her administration’s ambitious climate goals.

Read the full article at Maine Public

Concerns rise over offshore wind in Gulf of Maine

May 22, 2024 — Ocean grabbing is a term frequently used in relation to private interests’ takeover of the ocean commons. While the Department of the Interior’s April 30 announcement that it would sell one million acres of leases for offshore wind power development in the Gulf of Maine may have shocked some, it’s been in the pipeline since 2010.

The proposal has moved ahead despite a Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) determination of no competitive interest for Gulf of Maine Research Lease Applications as recently as March 2023. Over the past year, BOEM has forged on and developed a wind leasing process for the Gulf of Maine conducted a draft environmental review and analysis of the Gulf of Maine and finalized the wind energy area for the Gulf.

Read the full article at National Fisherman

Scientists Puzzling Over Colder Deep Water Temperatures in Gulf of Maine

May 19, 2024 — About a dozen years ago, the Gulf of Maine experienced an ocean heatwave unlike any other.

Today, scientists are puzzling over new data that suggest the Gulf may be experiencing another kind of climate shock.

Data collected from buoys placed in the Gulf of Maine show that over the last six months, deep water temperatures are noticeably lower than the long-term average.

“It’s not just cold in the deep waters right now, it’s really cold. And it’s fresher, it’s really fresher than it’s been,” said Nick Record, a senior scientist with Bigelow Laboratory. “These are very unusual conditions, so I think there’s a lot that we can learn by watching how the year unfolds.”

Read the full article at Seafoodnews.com

Fishing Partnership hosting survival training in Maine

May 19, 2024 — When something disastrous happens at sea, fishermen have only seconds to make a series of decisions to determine the outcome. Training for these events can increase the likelihood of survival.

Fishing Partnership Support Services is holding safety and Survival Training in South Portland, Maine, on May 23, 2024, from 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The training will be held at the U.S. Coast Guard Sector Northern New England. Fishing Partnership is a non-profit support service organization founded in 1997. It is dedicated to improving the health, safety, and economic security of commercial fishermen and their families. The organization has provided critical services and programs to more than 20,000 fishing families in New England.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

 

MAINE: Katahdin Salmon secures essential permits for planned Maine-based RAS, plans rebranding

May 15, 2024 — Katahdin Salmon has obtained every critical permit needed to construct a salmon recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) in Millinocket, Maine, U.S.A.

The project, started by Xcelerate Aqua in October 2022 and announced in February 2023, aims to build a 10,000-metric-ton (MT) salmon RAS on the site of a former settling lagoon at the Great Northern Paper Co. paper mill. Xcelerate Aqua was founded by former Nordic Aquafarms President and Co-Founder Erik Heim and former Nordic Aquafarms Executive Vice President Marianne Naess.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

MAINE: Maine to spend $25 million to rebuild waterfront after devastating winter storms and flooding

May 14, 2024 — Maine’s government will spend tens of millions of dollars to rebuild the state’s working waterfront communities after a series of devastating winter storms pummeled the state’s docks, wharves and coastal businesses.

The back-to-back storms hammered the Northeast in January and hit Maine and New Hampshire especially hard, bringing flooding and heavy damage to dozens of businesses. State officials in Maine said the storms, which were later declared a “major disaster” by President Joe Biden, caused about $70 million in damage in the state.

Applications for funding are now available to repair and rebuild working waterfront areas damaged by the storms, Democratic Gov. Janet Mills said Thursday. The $25 million being made available is part of a $60 million rebuilding package approved by the Maine Legislature for storm rebuilding, Mills said.

Read the full article at the Associated Press

MAINE: Maine lobster gauge increase brings economic worries

May 14, 2024 –A Maine congressman and fishing groups are urging the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) to delay the proposed increase to the minimum allowable catch size for Maine lobstermen. Concerns have been raised regarding the dire economic consequences this could have on harvesters and Maine’s economy.

Last May, the ASMFC Lobster Board passed Addendum 27, which would entail implementing a gauge increase from 3 ¼ inches to 3 5/16 inches in response to juvenile lobsters reaching a 35 percent decline. The increase was initiated in 2017 as a proactive measure to improve the resilience of the lobster stock in the Gulf of Maine and Georges Bank but was paused to prioritize work on the North Atlantic right whales. There was a seven-month delay in implementing the gauge, which will now be enforced on Jan. 1, 2025.

In a letter addressed to Robert Beal, the executive director of ASMFC, Rep. Jared Golden shared that he is “deeply concerned about the implications a gauge increase next year- absent robust economic and scientific analyses- will have on the viability of Maine’s lobster industry and the communities it supports.”

Fishermen, Rep. Golden, and lobster dealers are concerned that the data used by ASMFC to arrive at the 35 percent trigger index was “overly precautionary” and may not accurately reflect the current status of the stock.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

Gulf of Maine Research Institute Webinar to focus on Farmed Shellfish Market Analysis and Historic Growth

May 14, 2024 — The following was released by Gulf of Maine Research Institute:

An upcoming webinar will take a deep dive into the analysis of the farmed shellfish market released earlier this year by the Gulf of Maine Research Institute that showed Maine’s farmed shellfish industry is projected to bring in well over $20 million in yearly revenues by 2028.

In this free webinar, experts from GMRI and Pentallect will share valuable information on the current market scenario, growth opportunities, and key challenges in the industry.

This webinar is for aquaculture farmers who want to better understand current shellfish markets, as well as financial intuitions who may be involved or are interested in the market outlook of aquaculture businesses (to give loans or invest in) and seafood distributors. Presenters will discuss current market trends, highlight growth opportunities and key findings from the Shellfish Market Analysis published in February.

The report finds that Maine has a “significant opportunity to expand its farmed shellfish industry” and that based on projections, the Maine shellfish industry could achieve revenues of over $28 million by 2028, or a 40 percent growth from 2022.

In total, shellfish represents a $700+ million in the U.S. marketplace for domestic harvesters, and $1.1 billion including imports. Maine accounts for approximately 3.5 percent of the total shellfish domestic-sourced landings, delivering approximately $26 million in landed value.

Oysters in particular are seeing dramatic growth since the last report in 2016. The Northeast region of the United States has been the only region to expand oyster capacity over the past six years, and is well positioned to capitalize on that growth and demand not met by other markets.

Maine specifically has been the Northeast share growth leader since 2015, gaining a staggering 8 share points from Massachusetts, the current greatest share holder.The best, or mid-point, projection estimates that demand for Maine oysters will grow by almost 50 percent over the 5-year planning horizon, generating approximately 5.5 million oysters. Demand for Maine aquaculture-sourced mussels is projected to grow approximately 40 percent over current supply by 2028, which exceeds the largest harvest achieved in 2019 by close to 20 percent, the report found.

While Maine’s scallop industry is only 2 percent of scallop volume nationally, Maine scallops fetch the highest average price per pound. The report finds that scallops are a newer aquaculture market and are less impacted by federal quotas than other regions, given the majority of scallops coming from day-boats in state waters.

For more information, read more about the shellfish market and opportunities for growth here: GMRI_Farmed_Shellfish_Market_Report_2.0.pdf (d3esu6nj4wau0q.cloudfront.net)

To register for the webinar, please visit: Shellfish Market Analysis Webinar – Gulf of Maine Research Institute (gmri.org)

WHO: GMRI Scientists, Pentallect experts, aquaculture famrers, financial institutions
WHAT: A deep dive and discussion on the Market Shellfish Analysis
WHEN: Thursday, May 23, 4 p.m. – 4:45 p.m.
WHERE: Zoom

About the Gulf of Maine Research Institute:
The Gulf of Maine Research Institute develops and delivers collaborative solutions to global ocean challenges. Located in Portland, ME, the institute is dedicated to the resilience of the Gulf of Maine ecosystem and the communities that depend on it. For more information, visit www.gmri.org.

Federal government seeking feedback ahead of Gulf of Maine offshore wind auction

May 13, 2024 — As Maine is still figuring out where to build a port for its budding offshore wind industry, the U.S. Department of the Interior announced its proposal to auction offshore wind leases in the Gulf of Maine April 30.

As part of the Biden administration’s efforts to drive more offshore wind development, the Gulf of Maine is slated to have eight lease areas offshore Maine, Massachusetts and New Hampshire, which have the potential to generate 15 gigawatts of clean energy to power more than 5 million homes, according to a news release from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM).

“We’re taking decisive action to catalyze America’s offshore wind industry and leverage American innovation to provide reliable, affordable power to homes and businesses, all while addressing the climate crisis,” said U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland.

Read the full article at NH Business Review