The report’s main takeaway? “Without institutional support, high-level policy and programmatic coordination and sufficient funding to protect access, the future of Maine’s working waterfront is dire.”
ELLSWORTH A grizzled lobsterman hauls traps onto the wharf as the sun sets slow and pink over the harbor. Fishing boats head home to unload catch as “There’s a critical connection between the ocean and Maine’s economy,” Island Institute Senior Community Development Officer Sam Belknap said, following the institute’s August 2021 publication, “The Critical Nature of Maine’s Working Waterfronts and Access to the Shore.”