Maine DMR's bay management website.
Bay Management Study Final Report
Results of DMR's Bay Mgmt Community Discussions Jan-Mar 2005.
Reports on:
2/25/05 Steering Committee meeting, Augusta.
2/3/05 Public Meeting, Rockland.
6/6/04 Land & Water Resources Council meeting, Augusta.
1/30/04 ME Aquaculture Task Force Bay Management Recommendations.
ME Aquaculture Task Force discusses Bay Management ONLINE AUDIO
Land and Water Resources Council Homepage. *** LWRC's statutes < MRSA Title 5 - §3331
Bay Management Science & Innovation
Title 38 Section 488 (13) Exemption of Aquaculture from Site Location of Development Law (scroll down to paragraph 13) This 12 year long exemption needs to be re-examined. Maine's aquaculture industries have matured sufficiently to be answerable to the same environmental standards as other coastal business proposals that have potential impacts on nearby land, air and water resources.
Proposal for a Habitat Area of Particular Concern for Juvenile Atlantic Cod (Gadus morhua) in the Nearshore Waters of the
Gulf of Maine. (New England Fishery Management Council) This important study reveals that restoring Maine's inshore cod schools requires managing large areas of the state's shallow (<30 feet deep) nearshore waters in ways that promote the natural shallow water marine ecosystem necessary for that fish's larvae to metamorphose successfully to their juvenile life stage.
Summarizing excerpt: "Available data and a review of recent scientific literature suggests that consideration be given to designating a juvenile Atlantic cod HAPC for the perimeter of the Gulf of Maine from mean low water (MLW) to a depth of 9 m below MLW (30')."
"The benthic community within this very narrow coastal zone has been found to be critical for Atlantic cod during a short period following metamorphosis from the larval stage and prior to settlement to demersal habitat. It serves as a source of cod replenishment for seaward fishing areas because juveniles move into deeper offshore water as they mature. Other valuable groundfish (e.g., winter flounder and white hake) as well as American lobster would also be afforded the same protection."
End of Excerpt