Resources Database

All holders of aquaculture leases and LPA licenses are required to hold the Aquaculture Harvest License in order to harvest and sell product from their aquaculture sites, regardless of the species they grow. Commercial harvester's licenses now apply to only wild-harvest product.

There are several ways in which birds interact with shellfish aquaculture. Birds can cause significant damage to crops through predation. Some birds fall into the category of protected resources and farmers have been variously accused of interfering with foraging, (either attracting or disturbing or both) and interfering with hunting. Birds can be attracted to aquaculture structures for roosting or foraging and their guano can impact water quality and trigger the need for growers to develop management plans under the National Shellfish Sanitation Plan.

The goal of these new requirements is to control the safety of molluscan shellfish for human consumption by preventing unnecessary growth of bacterial pathogens resulting from improper or ineffective cooling or from time to temperature abuse.

Provides the essential skills, knowledge and confidence to survive potentially life-threatening situations using both classroom and hands on training in the use of lifesaving equipment.

Supporting marine science for Maine people focusing on Maine’s coastal communities, scientific research, and tomorrow's marine workforce.

Thesis paper explaining the work that went into creating the Oyster suitability Index.

An overview of oyster production techniques including nursery and husbandry, common gear used, and oyster biology.

Kelp offers a promising way for fishermen to diversify their income streams in the lobster offseason, and it's also the newest seafood product GMRI verified under their Gulf of Maine Responsibly Harvested® label. The Gulf of Maine Responsibly Harvested® label is a promise that seafood hails from the clean, cool waters of the Gulf of Maine and the fishery or farm is managed in a way that contributes to the long-term health of the resource. The label empowers consumers to buy seafood they can feel good about.

This report is based on the research priorities survey conducted in June 2019 of Maine’s aquaculture community and is compared with surveys from 2012 and 2016 to look at trends. There have been some changes in the prioritization of needs since 2016, but many of the same research, development, and education (R&D&E) needs persist and remain unaddressed. As expected, there are different R&D&E priorities for different aquaculture sectors.

Atlantic Captain’s Academy offers a variety of Coast Guard approved courses for Coast Guard captain’s license candidates.

Summarizes some simple ways that holders of a valid Maine Aquaculture License can get their shellfish to market.

The Coastal Satellite Oceanography team at University of Maine created a high resolution satellite imagery of the coast of Maine that uses sea surface temperature, turbidity, and chlorophyll concentration to determine oyster suitability.

Detailed look into why site selection is so important including, biological requirements, physical characteristics, as well as social & regulatory factors.

Provides a summary of direct and indirect environmental factors that may affect your site selection for your marine aquaculture business.

Reviews the keys to running a successful business; the four P's of marketing, wholesale distributors, risks, and sales.

ShellGIS is a desktop-based software tool that, for the choice of 14-commonly cultured shellfish species, enables dynamic predictions of shellfish production, environmental effects, and profitability according to culture practice and site selection within a given GIS domain.