Articles
Two oceans commissions agree on many points, but propose different approaches
Lee Crockett of the Marine Fisheries Conservation Network said he was “struck by the amount of overlap” when he compared the recommendations of two commissions that recently studied the needs for managing U.S. oceans. Environmentalists worried that the Bush-appointed U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy would come up with vastly different recommendations from those of the
COMMENTARYA Breakthrough in Understanding
Once, scientists and lobster harvesters were like the Hatfields and McCoys. They hardly talked to each other at all, and discussions quickly became heated. The same might have been said of lobstermen themselves. But change has come. The hallmark of the First Lobster Town Meeting held in Portland in April (WWF May ’04) was the
Lost Lobsters, Aberrant Gulls
This book was first published in 1996, and while its basic premise has not yet been incorporated into mainstream thinking, Our Stolen Future is making headway, at least in the community of Long Island Sound lobstermen. Recommended by a Long Island Sound harvester attending the First Lobster Town Meeting in Portland last April, the book
Muscongus Among Us!
One evening in April, a group of midcoast teachers gathered in Waldoboro to sniff the musky odor of a deceased storm petrel, test out a “blubber mitt” and turn a paper plate into a puffin. These were but a few of the activities overseen by Sue Schubel, outreach educator for Audubon, as she handed elementary
Newfoundland Lobstermen Act to Protect Their Stocks
Newfoundland’s cod fishery, the mainstay of the province’s fishermen, collapsed in 1992. The following year, lobster harvesters on its Eastport Peninsula experienced their worst year of landings ever. Chilled by the possibility of losing another fishery, they decided to do whatever it took to save their stocks. “Before the moratorium on cod, we had 248
MLA Celebrates 50 Years
The 1,200-member Maine Lobstermen’s Association celebrated its 50th anniversary at an annual meeting held during the Maine Fishermen’s Forum, March 6. “You work together in the Maine Lobstermen’s Association in a way that’s a model for the rest of the country,” U.S. Rep. Tom Allen of Portland told members. “I’ve advocated for your model of
Seafood Processors Face New Labeling Rules
If nothing changes between now and Sept. 30, the seafood industry will be required to label nearly all its products to identify the country where the fish or shellfish originated, even though all other food products were allowed an extra two years to comply with a new law. Seafood producers that import raw material from
The Sapphire Sea
William Morrow, 2003 272 pages The first novel by Portland author John B. Robinson, The Sapphire Sea, is a cinematic adventure story that takes readers on a breathless ride through the exotic, dangerous and little-known worlds of Madagascar and the gem trade. From the first page, when a bright blue flash leads young expatriate gem
Farmed Salmon Report Causes Uproar
World media from Maine to Singapore leaped on a story in January that linked farmed salmon to much higher levels of suspected carcinogens than wild salmon. The report, which appeared in the latest issue of Science Magazine released Jan. 8, recommended consumers restrict their intake of wild salmon according to its region of origin and
At Island Libraries, Business is Brisk
Maine island libraries loom distinctly large on lists of the state’s top ten in per-capita services to their patrons. A recently-released report on state library statistics for 2002 shows a disproportionate number of island libraries represented in categories of service such as “per capita circulation,” “per capita collection” and “per capita visits.” Are islanders more