Scallop season to continue

Boston.com:

"PORTLAND, Maine—State officials are backing off from last week's decision to cancel the second half of Maine's scallop season in order to help scallop populations rebuild.

The Department of Marine Resources on Monday approved a 35-day season that begins Feb. 25, but only in selected areas, including Cobscook Bay.

Deputy Commissioner David Etnier said the department sought a way to enable fishermen to have some income but still provide protection for the resource.

The first half of the season ran from Dec. 1 to Jan. 4."

Maine's Great Potential for Wind

Mainebiz looks at the State's vast offshore wind potential, and the challenges capturing it.

"The Sway turbine is long and lean with a mast the color of an overripe lemon. The plan is to tow the mast out to sea with a barge, stand it upright by weighting one end, and pop the blades on the top using a crane on the barge. The turbine is then towed by the barge out to deep water, the base of the stem drops an anchor into the seabed that fills with sand, and the anchor is secured to the mast and the top of the turbine by cables. The result is an elegant wind turbine with a slight lean that alone could produce up to 5 megawatts of energy, or enough to power about 1,000 homes."

Jail to be Restaurant and Bakery

AP:

"SKOWHEGAN -- The old Somerset County Jail will soon have a new owner who hopes to open a restaurant and bakery on the site that used to house prisoners.

Somerset County commissioners have approved selling the jail for $65,000 -- less than a third of the original asking price -- to Skowhegan artist Amber Lambke. The deal is scheduled to close on March 30.

Lambke says she and her business partner will turn the 14,000-square-foot Victorian-style jailhouse into a multi-use facility with a grist mill, bakery, restaurant and small retail store to sell bread and local fruits, vegetables, cheese, meat and dairy products.

The jail, which was built in 1897 in downtown Skowhegan, shut down last fall when a new 200-bed county jail opened in Madison."

Scallop Season Cut

AP:

"PORTLAND -- Maine's scallop draggers and divers have been dealt a blow after regulators canceled the second half of the state scallop season.

The Department of Marine Resources had already cut the season to 70 days, down from 132 days last year.

The first half of the season ran from Dec. 1 to Jan. 4, with the second half set to run from Feb. 25 to March 31.

Deputy Commissioner David Etnier says the second half of the season has now been canceled to help the declining scallop population. He says the resource is in bad shape for a number of reasons, but that the only factor regulators can control is the human element."

Wind farm Starts Up

MaineToday.com:

"DANFORTH -- Gov. John Baldacci joined First Wind officials to mark the start of commercial operations at the Stetson Wind power project, which now becomes the largest wind-power facility in New England.

First Wind says the 38-turbine wind farm on Stetson Mountain near Danforth in eastern Maine's Washington County will produce the equivalent power needs of 23,500 homes. Stetson surpasses the Mars Hill wind project in northern Maine as New England's largest.

During today's dedication, Baldacci said Stetson Wind continues Maine's aggressive leadership in pursuing energy independence. Even as the Stetson project goes on line, an extension known as Stetson II is seeking permitting.

In western Maine, TransCanada's 44-turbine project on Kibby Mountain is under construction."

Further Groundfish Cuts

Portland Press Herald reports on proposed National Marine Fisheries Service rules for number of days that can be fished.

Wind Farm on Stetson Mt. Opens

MaineToday.com:

"The 38-turbine wind farm along Stetson mountain's long, low ridgeline of 600 to 1,200 feet is the second in the state completed by First Wind, whose Mars Hill project has been until now New England's largest commercial wind power project. Together, they will produce just under 100 megawatts of power."... more

Shrimp Catch Good

Mainebiz:

"Catch records for the month of December show Maine's shrimp season started strong.

Fishermen caught an average of 320 pounds of shrimp per hour of towing in December, despite inclement weather that kept many fishermen in port, according to the Mount Desert Islander. That's down from 2007's average of 332 pounds, the latest year for which the Department of Marine Resources has data, but still higher than the 200-250 pounds usually caught per hour during December. But there has not been much market for shrimp since many processors are not yet operating, Les White of the DMR told the paper.

In November, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission decided to extend the 2009 shrimp season, which began Dec. 1, by an additional four weeks in response to an anticipated strong shrimp season, according to the paper."

Wind-power Rebates

MaineToday.com:

"AUGUSTA -- The Maine Public Utilities Commission is offering a new incentive for residents and business owners to turn to wind for their energy needs.

The PUC's Efficiency Maine program is offering rebates of up to $2,000 for qualified residential wind energy systems. Non-residential systems that meet program
requirements could be eligible for rebates of up to $4,000.

PUC Chairwoman Sharon Reishus says the new program will give help to those who want to take the next step toward energy independence."

Salmon Recovery Questions

Bangor Daily News:

"The surge of Atlantic salmon that returned to the Penobscot and other Maine rivers to spawn this year appears to be the result of improved fish survival in the ocean rather than any changes to the state’s stocking program, biologists said Thursday.

Exactly why salmon seem to be faring better during the life stage they spend at sea is still open to debate, however.

More than 2,100 Atlantic salmon were counted making their way upriver in the Penobscot earlier this year. That was the largest return since 1992 and more than double the previous year’s figure.

The number of adult sea-run salmon returning to Maine’s other rivers was still tiny by comparison. But in almost every river, biologists observed more salmon returning this year than the five-year average.

In the Saco River, for instance, 62 adult salmon returned in 2008, compared with 24 last year. Figures were also impressive on the Aroostook, where the 44 fish represented a welcome change from the five-year average of eight fish.

Rivers in Canada, Scotland and Ireland also saw larger returns this year, according to Joan Trial, a biologist with Maine’s Bureau of Sea-Run Fisheries and Habitat.

“This year was an exceptional year. I wish we knew why,” Trial told members of the state’s Atlantic Salmon Commission on Thursday." ... more

Appeal to Lincoln Lakes Wind Farm Approval

Bangor Daily News:

"The Lincoln Planning Board used “ludicrous” arguments in shoehorning a proposed $130 million wind farm into its regulations, a Bar Harbor lawyer opposing the board’s approval of the proposal contended Tuesday.

Representing a group opposing the project, the Friends of Lincoln Lakes, attorney Lynne A. Williams filed an appeal with the Lincoln Appeals Board on Monday charging that First Wind’s turbines do not belong in residential zones of Rollins Mountain, where the project is slated to go if it is approved by Maine Department of Environmental Protection and other agencies." ...more

Cruise Ship Numbers

Portland Press Herald's report on the income from cruise ships.

A Million Dollar Loan for Working Farms

MaineToday.com reports on the Maine Community Foundation's $1 million loan to the Maine Farmland Trust to support working farms.