Just as I anticipated, sustainability messaging was ubiquitous on the trade show floor at the 2013 Boston Seafood Show. Repeated exposure to the word felt less like an illusion and more like dilution.

Developed by Maine Sea Grant and Maine Department of Marine Resources

WHAT temperature data are available from the Maine Dept. of Marine Resources?
The Maine Dept. of Marine Resources records shoreline temperatures along the entire coastline, through its water quality sampling program and the volunteer phytoplankton monitoring program. These data are available upon request. This page is designed to help current and prospective aquaculturists access this data, for consideration in siting their farms.

10. We can't trust our food. An estimated 10% of seafood is not the species it is sold or marketed as, and certain species are more likely to be false than others.

9. People are paying for more than they get - maybe 40% of the time.

8. Faking it is easy. Most of the seafood most of us buy and eat is in skinless, boneless, sometimes coated or breaded or otherwise concealed pieces, rather than whole. Processed fish is harder to evaluate "organoleptically." 

As I prepare to head south to the Boston Seafood Show, where I'll be reporting for The Working Waterfront, I’ve been catching up on the latest national media stories on “sustainable seafood.” I don’t want to take an incredible bite only to find out that the fish I just sampled is not caught or raised “sustainably.”

Aquaculture In Shared Waters

Feeling the scallop season get a way from me, I’ve been in pursuit of fresh Placopectin magellenicus harvested from Maine waters by dayboat draggers and divers. But fresh, local seafood can be hard to find where I live in Bangor, within reach of the tide but 30+ miles from saltwater. Since I had a meeting Tuesday in South Portland, I knew I’d have the opportunity. But where to go? 

Scallop season began on Sunday December 2 and runs through March 20. With new management measures in place, including closed areas, limited access to other areas, and reduced fishing days, the harvest may be lower this year and prices may be higher. Neither factor should be a deterrent to seeking out Maine scallops this season; it just means they are extra special.

The symposium attracted an impressive media response, starting with the Associated Press (first here and then a story from the conference about guessing the age of a lobster).

Today was the first full day of the American Lobster in a Changing Ecosystem: A US-Canada Science Symposium. More than 100 of the region’s top lobster scientists have gathered in Portland, Maine, to share their research.

Maine Department of Marine Resources Commissioner Patrick Keliher in his welcome remarks reminded the scientists that they also are here to help managers and fishermen to define “the new normal.”

The new normal = lots of lobsters.

12 July 2013

Maine Healthy Beaches Status & Trends 2005-2010 summarizes water quality at Maine beaches as monitored by volunteers and staff of the Maine Healthy Beaches Program. Water quality trends, pollution threats, and actions to improve water quality are detailed for each beach in the program.

After a hectic summer of coast-hopping, I finally found myself in Portland, where I’ve been wanting to check out the new Eventide Oyster Co. So I caught up with some good friends at the small, bright space on Middle Street next to Hugo’s Restaurant, of the same owners.

The Maine Lobster Festival is underway in Rockland, and there will be plenty of lobsters to go around—at an affordable price, too, given the recent surge in supply.

Depending on who you are, the abundance of Maine lobster has been

Yesterday I joined my colleague Natalie Springuel and our partners in eastern Maine to officially launch the Downeast Fisheries Trail. The 45 sites on the trail, in Hancock and Washington counties, highlight the region's maritime heritage.

There are fish in these rivers.

In the Kennebec, the Penobscot, the rivers in between and either side, the alewives are running.