http://www.workingwaterfront.com Sat, 06 Sep 2008 17:01:47 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.2 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/images/ww_banner_bg.png http://www.workingwaterfront.com http://www.workingwaterfront.com/columns/Parallel-44/12593/ The past two months have been quiet ones at Portland's International Marine Terminal, the state's only container port. Operations at the city-owned facility were suspended June 29, shortly after the paper mill in Old Town shut down pending bankruptcy negotiations. The suspension, which forced the port's other clients to seek alternate shipping routes, demonstrated a key vulnerability: a near total reliance on exports by the pulp and paper industry, which is on the decline. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Colin Woodard) Mon, 01 Sep 2008 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/columns/Parallel-44/12593/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/columns/Venturing/12594/ In Maine, I'm afraid, it's too easy to forget that working waterfronts exist all over the world, in all sorts of places that don't have lobsters, big tides or even salt water. Take Duluth, Minnesota, at the western end of Lake Superior. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by David D. Platt) Mon, 01 Sep 2008 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/columns/Venturing/12594/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/reviews/George-Washingtons-Secret-Navy/12597/ Fighting the Revolution at sea Following the battles of Lexington, Concord and Bunker Hill in the spring of 1775, the American Revolution devolved into a stalemate. The British army withdrew to Boston where they remained for the next year surrounded by a ragtag American army led by George Washington. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Harry Gratwick) Mon, 01 Sep 2008 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/reviews/George-Washingtons-Secret-Navy/12597/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/mail/Unfair-dismissal-of-a-new-idea/12598/ To the editor: Roger F. Duncan, my eleventh-grade English teacher forty-six years ago, taught us to write plain and pointed stories in the tradition of E.B. White, and "Banker on Vacation" (Working Waterfront, August 2008) shows that his own knack for that is undiminished. But he also taught us to be logical and fair, and here his August 11 piece is less exemplary. Mr. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (Charles Karelis) Mon, 01 Sep 2008 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/mail/Unfair-dismissal-of-a-new-idea/12598/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/mail/%98Swift-Boat-defined-incorrectly/12599/ To the editor: In his otherwise fine article on "Jack" Elliot ("Jack Elliot: Remembering a ‘Swift Boater from Thomaston, Maine, WWF August 2008) Harry Gratwick notes that LCDR Elliot served on PBRs but he errs in calling them Swift Boats. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (A. E. Norton) Mon, 01 Sep 2008 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/mail/%98Swift-Boat-defined-incorrectly/12599/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Proposed-European-Union-ban-could-jeopardize-seal-hunt/12603/ Prince Edward Island seal harvester Kenneth MacLeod of Murray River may be a small-time harvester, usually taking about 475 pelts. But his crew relies very heavily on his income. "I have to make money in order for them to make money," says MacLeod. MacLeod was adding his opinion to the late July reports by the European Union of a proposed ban on seal products. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Kathy Birt) Mon, 01 Sep 2008 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Proposed-European-Union-ban-could-jeopardize-seal-hunt/12603/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/PEI-fishermen-close-tuna-fishery-wait-for-bigger-fish/12604/  The Prince Edward Island tuna season opened on July 30, and as of August 14 reports from the fishery were cautiously positive. "On the whole I would say that this year's results are steadier than they have been," said Ed Frenette, executive director of the Prince Edward Island Fishermen's Association (PEIFA). Frenette is quick to add that a major reason for the season's steadiness is the regulation limiting takes to "one fish, per boat, per day. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Bob Gustafson) Mon, 01 Sep 2008 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/PEI-fishermen-close-tuna-fishery-wait-for-bigger-fish/12604/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Rising-from-the-ashes-Washburn-and-Doughty-cleans-up-and-starts-rebuilding/12605/ The first thing you notice upon arriving at Washburn & Doughty's East Boothbay shipyard is the smell. On a damp foggy morning, the stench rises from the charred wood and ash ground into the earth along with scraps of metal, insulation, and fiberglass. The smoke ended a week after the fire, but this site will always bear scorch marks from the inferno that swept through on July 11. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Bob Moore) Mon, 01 Sep 2008 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Rising-from-the-ashes-Washburn-and-Doughty-cleans-up-and-starts-rebuilding/12605/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Lab-goes-on-the-road-to-treat-mussel-threat/12608/ With the scourge of tunicates wreaking havoc on mussel socks in Prince Edward Island for at least one decade, a mobile laboratory set up at Georgetown Wharf offers the opportunity to take a closer look at the problem. It is suspected that some of these aquatic invasive species (AIS) have been transplanted via the ballast waters or attached to slow-moving, large Trans-Atlantic ships and transplanted into Canadian waters. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Kathy Birt) Mon, 01 Sep 2008 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Lab-goes-on-the-road-to-treat-mussel-threat/12608/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Another-bailout-for-Saint-John-Digby-ferry/12609/ The ferry service between Saint John, New Brunswick, and Digby, Nova Scotia, on the Bay of Fundy has received a second funding reprieve-a total of 15.1 million from the governments of Canada, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. Announcement of the funding was made by Peter MacKay, National Defense Minister who also holds the portfolio for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA) and who represents Nova Scotia in the Canadian Cabinet. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Bob Gustafson) Mon, 01 Sep 2008 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Another-bailout-for-Saint-John-Digby-ferry/12609/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/reviews/Inheriting-the-Trade-A-Northern-Family-Confronts-its-Legacy-as-the-Largest-Slave-Trading-Dynasty-in-US-History/12611/ An evil business that benefited a whole country Slaving was a maritime trade in the 18th and early 19th centuries, a block in the very foundation of the United States. Anyone, particularly a white New Englander who likes to think he or she didn't benefit from slaving because it was a Southern phenomenon, is sadly mistaken. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by David D. Platt) Mon, 01 Sep 2008 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/reviews/Inheriting-the-Trade-A-Northern-Family-Confronts-its-Legacy-as-the-Largest-Slave-Trading-Dynasty-in-US-History/12611/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Over-400-attend-annual-haddock-bake/12616/ The Midcoast Fishermen's Association (MFA) of Port Clyde held its annual haddock bake on August 9. Attendees of the event were welcomed at the door of the Martinsville Grange with appetizers of bacon wrapped scallops and Maine shrimp tarts. Over 400 attended. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Laura Kramar) Mon, 01 Sep 2008 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Over-400-attend-annual-haddock-bake/12616/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/New-sardine-history-museum-opens-in-Jonesport/12619/ "Sardines are in my blood," said Ronnie Peabody, 53, director of Jonesport's new Maine Coast Sardine History Museum. "I grew up hearing sardine carriers and factory whistles since the day I was born." Each of Jonesport's then existing three sardine factories whistled to signal the change in shifts and the arrival of a load of herring to tell people to come to work. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Sandra Dinsmore) Mon, 01 Sep 2008 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/New-sardine-history-museum-opens-in-Jonesport/12619/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Deciphering-mysterious-world-of-lobster-pricing/12621/ Nobody will ever fully understand how people price lobster. That's a given. To begin with, no matter what the boat price, i.e., the price per lb. for lobster paid to fishermen, most don't believe they're paid adequately for the lobster they risk their lives to land and bring back to shore to sell. Many fishermen go beyond that and think dealers cheat them. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Sandra Dinsmore) Mon, 01 Sep 2008 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Deciphering-mysterious-world-of-lobster-pricing/12621/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Final-groundfish-management-measures-upcoming/12625/ In early August 2008, officials, industry and interest groups met at NOAA's Northeast Fishery Science Center in Woods Hole, Mass. to hear the preliminary results of the third Groundfish Assessment Review Meeting. The assessment review, known as GARM III, has the goal of setting benchmark assessments for 19 groundfish stocks (including cod, haddock, flounder, hake, pollock, ocean pout and redfish) managed under the multi-species Groundfish Fishery Management Plan. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Jennifer Litteral) Mon, 01 Sep 2008 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Final-groundfish-management-measures-upcoming/12625/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/A-glossary-of-lobster-terms/12626/ Lobster is sold by the lb., which is spelled "lb." rather than "pound" to differentiate between the lobster's weight and a tidal lobster pound, which is generally a cove fenced off to hold and feed previously trapped lobster until holidays or until prices rise enough that the product can be sold to financial advantage. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Sandra Dinsmore) Mon, 01 Sep 2008 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/A-glossary-of-lobster-terms/12626/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Visiting-students-learn-about-Maine-through-lobsters/12629/ In late July I was invited to speak on some aspect of U.S. culture to a group of Latin American university student leaders. I chose to speak on the lobstering industry in Maine. As a summer resident of Friendship for the past 47 years, I know something about lobstering, especially since my husband Jim and I organized a seminar on lobstering for our local Learning in Retirement organization. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Nina M. Scott) Mon, 01 Sep 2008 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Visiting-students-learn-about-Maine-through-lobsters/12629/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/columns/Lobsters%94the-rest-of-the-story/12632/ A deep sense of unease pervades the waterfronts of Maine's 145 lobster villages scattered between York Harbor and Eastport. During the past four years lobstermen have been squeezed by continuously declining harvests and declining prices - not how the laws of supply and demand are supposed to work-while also trying to adapt their businesses to fuel prices that have doubled and bait prices that have almost tripled. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Philip W. Conkling) Mon, 01 Sep 2008 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/columns/Lobsters%94the-rest-of-the-story/12632/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Fire-destroys-Midcoast-shipyard/12546/ Two partially completed tugboats and a pile of scrap metal were all that remained after a fierce fire destroyed the Washburn & Doughty shipyard in E. Boothbay on July 11. The company, which employed approximately 100 workers before the fire, laid off 65 of them and kept 35 working on a third tug that had been launched and wasn't damaged in the fire. Damage was estimated at approximately $35 million. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by David D. Platt) Fri, 01 Aug 2008 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Fire-destroys-Midcoast-shipyard/12546/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/A-Novel-Approach-to-Shore-Access/12548/ A Midcoast group hopes to buy Merchant's Landing on Spruce Head Island in S. Thomaston. A small marina since 1973, Merchant's Landing came up for sale last year (WWF July 2007), threatening the shore access of island owners and others who have used the place for years. Sharon McHold, a member of the Dix Island Association and a longtime user of Merchant's Landing, has organized an effort to buy the landing in shares in order to preserve the shore access. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by David D. Platt) Fri, 01 Aug 2008 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/A-Novel-Approach-to-Shore-Access/12548/