department of marine resources

Published
July 28, 2022

Great white shark sighting confirmed at Popham Beach State Park

Swimmers were ordered to leave the ocean after a paddle boarder spotted the shark Wednesday evening, but the beach resumed normal operations Thursday.
Published
June 2, 2022

Kennebec River dam owner dismisses state fish passage plan as counterproductive

Brookfield Renewable and the state disagree on a suitable solution to let endangered Atlantic salmon and other river-run fish pass the Shawmut Dam in Fairfield to reach spawning grounds in the Sandy River.
Published
May 20, 2022

Numbers speak for themselves as alewives regain foothold in central Maine

As the fish's annual migration begins again, this is the first year in centuries that alewives will be able to swim upriver to China Lake, a milestone that Gov. Janet Mills and others celebrated this week.
Published
June 22, 2021

Atlantic salmon advocates angry about fish they say were injured during Waterville dam repair

Dam owner Brookfield Renewable Partners said in a statement that the company is disappointed by such claims from groups that want dams removed in lower Kennebec River communities.
Published
March 15, 2021

Public hearing on Kennebec River plan draws questions, comments about dam removal

The Maine Department of Marine Resources held a virtual public hearing Monday on a proposed amendment to its Kennebec River Management Plan.
Published
January 29, 2020

Researchers debunk decades-old clamming methods in Harpswell

Researchers found brushing, a technique involving inserting tree branches into mudflats to slow currents so allows juvenile clams to settle, doesn't increase clam populations.
Published
October 28, 2019

Rockweed industry adrift after ruling allows landowners to restrict access

The court decision this spring overturned decades of precedent that harvesters relied on to cut the wild seaweed.
Published
October 16, 2019

State floats whale protection plan that would affect a fraction of state’s lobster fleet

Only 1,200 of Maine's 5,000 licensed lobstermen have permits to fish in federal waters, where the state's proposal would require them to add traps on each buoy line to help right whales avoid entanglement.
Published
September 30, 2019

Mysterious Biddeford Pool pollution forces three-month shellfish closure

Advanced testing will be done to try to determine the source of bacterial contamination.
Published
July 11, 2019

Mills comes out against ‘foolish’ federal regulations to protect right whales

The governor is directing the Department of Marine Resources to come up with an alternative to a federal plan to reduce the Maine lobster industry's impact on endangered right whales.