Plan for salmon farm Down East prompts call for review of state licensing rules
Some believe that Maine s process for approving in-water aquaculture is too permissive, and that such operations could overtake the coastline.
Courtesy of American Aquafarms
Recent pushback surrounding a proposed in-water salmon farm in Frenchman Bay has fueled the efforts of a group advocating for changes to the state’s aquaculture regulations.
Protect Maine’s Fishing Heritage is calling for the Maine Department of Marine Resources to not only reject an as-of-yet unfiled proposal for a roughly 110-acre penned salmon fishery, but also revise the rules governing how such projects get approved. The group argues that without proper regulatory constraints, the state’s fast-growing aquaculture industry could disrupt traditional fishing activity and overtake the coast with large, industrial fish farm operations.
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An group of residents of the U.S. state of Maine have announced their opposition to an American Aquafarms proposal to grow up to 30,000 metric tons (MT) of Atlantic salmon in closed net-pens located near the town of Gouldsboro.
American Aquafarms President and CEO Mikael Rones told SeafoodSource soon after the project’s announcement he chose Maine due to its natural resources and the aquaculture industry’s potential in the state. The company purchased an East Coast lobster facility in Gouldsboro, Maine, in October 2020, with plans to establish a hatchery, fish farm facilities, and a processing plant.
“We looked at several areas over the U.S., and to us, we feel Maine is the right place based on water temperature and the potential of the industry in Maine. These are the two main reasons why we are there,” Rones said.
By Staff
A Portland-based fishery group is expressing concerns about the proposed site and size of a salmon farm in waters off Gouldsboro.
Protect Maine’s Fishing Heritage Foundation said the area proposed by American Aquafarms, in Frenchman’s Bay, is heavily fished by lobstermen.
American Aquafarms is an aquaculture startup backed by a Norwegian investor that has under contract the purchase of the 100,000-square-foot Maine Fair Trade Lobster processing facility in Gouldsboro. The company hopes to develop a salmon-farming operation there.
American Aquafarms was launched in Portland last year by Mikael Rones, CEO of Global AS, which is based in Trondheim, Norway. The proposal calls for building a salmon hatchery as well as farming and processing facilities on the site and operate closed deep-water pens for raising fish.
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