Visit Shellfish Aquaculture and the Environment Shellfish Aquaculture and the Environment Focuses primarily on the environmental sustainability of shellfish aquaculture including resource enhancement, habitat restoration, eutrophication, the impacts of farms on water quality, and harvest methods. 2011 Connecticut Sea Grant
Visit Aquaculture Systems for the Northeast Aquaculture Systems for the Northeast Overview of popular finfish and shellfish aquaculture systems (husbandry & gear) used in the northeast including bottom culture, near bottom culture, water column culture, surface culture, hatchery land-based systems. 2008 Northeastern Regional Aquaculture Center
Visit Conduct of Aquaculture Lease Hearings Conduct of Aquaculture Lease Hearings Fact sheet on aquaculture lease hearings which are an adjudicatory hearing. It also includes the criteria for issuing aquaculture leases. 2020 Maine DMR Division of Aquaculture
Visit Aquaculture LPA and Lease Requirements Aquaculture LPA and Lease Requirements Answers questions like "What can I grow?", "How much space can I occupy?" "How long does a lease or license last?", "How much will it cost?", "What type of gear can I use?", and more. 2022 Maine DMR Division of Aquaculture
Visit Bird Interactions with Shellfish Aquaculture Bird Interactions with Shellfish Aquaculture 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. 2021 Maine DMR Bureau of Public Health
Visit Aquaculture Lease/LPA Applications and Forms Aquaculture Lease/LPA Applications and Forms Descriptions of each aquaculture lease and license type. All applications must be submitted using these forms. 2020 Maine DMR Division of Aquaculture
Visit Decision Criteria For Issuing Aquaculture Leases Decision Criteria For Issuing Aquaculture Leases At aquaculture lease hearings, Maine DMR will receive evidence relating to the legal criteria upon which it must base its decision on whether to grant the lease. The criteria for granting a standard or experimental aquaculture lease that the lease must not unreasonably interfere with are listed here. 2019 Maine DMR Division of Aquaculture
Industry Perspective Common Aquaculture Lease Application Mistakes This document was generated by DMR staff and reflects mistakes that are routinely identified during the review of experimental and standard lease applications. These are the issues, or combination of issues, that most often result in an application being found incomplete. Maine Department of Marine Resources Division of Aquaculture 2020
Visit Shellfish Aquaculture is GOOD for the Environment! Shellfish Aquaculture is GOOD for the Environment! This brochure explains the benefits of shellfish aquaculture for the environment including improving water quality, increasing species diversity, removing excess nitrogen, and not needing fertilizers, chemicals, or antibiotics. 2018 East Coast Shellfish Growers Association, Rhode Island Sea Grant
Visit Upcoming Aquaculture Public Meetings, Hearings, and Scoping Sessions Upcoming Aquaculture Public Meetings, Hearings, and Scoping Sessions Lists all upcoming aquaculture public meetings, hearings, and scoping sessions and give the date, time, town and location for them. 2022 Maine DMR Division of Aquaculture
Visit Refuting Marine Aquaculture Myths, Unfounded Criticisms and Assumptions Refuting Marine Aquaculture Myths, Unfounded Criticisms and Assumptions A variety of tenacious myths critical of marine aquaculture practiced in the United States have persisted for decades to be presented as facts to the public and Congress. The reality is U.S. fish and shellfish farmers culture aquatic animals and plants within a very complicated and expensive legal, regulatory, husbandry, and science-driven environment. We believe critics are unfamiliar with this environment or have erroneously assumed marine aquaculture-related environmental damage reported in other countries occurs in the United States. 2024 National Aquaculture Association
Industry Perspective Being a Good Aquaculture Lease Applicant Tips on getting through the lease hearing process from a veteran oyster farm owner. Bill Mook, business owner 2020
Visit Diagram of the Limited Purpose Aquaculture (LPA) Application Process Diagram of the Limited Purpose Aquaculture (LPA) Application Process This flowchart visually maps out the Maine DMR Limited Purpose Aquaculture (LPA) application process. 2022 Maine DMR Division of Aquaculture
Visit Best Practices for the East Coast Shellfish Aquaculture Industry Best Practices for the East Coast Shellfish Aquaculture Industry In September 2023 the ECSGA updated its 2010 Best Management Practices manual. Building on the 2010 version, this update adds a new section on the management and handling of floating gear, hundreds of embedded links, info on new gear types and a revised bibliography. ECSGA also completely revamped the tool to create your own farm-specific Best Practices document: the Best Practices Form. 2023 East Coast Shellfish Growers Association
Visit Best Management Practices for the East Coast Shellfish Aquaculture Industry Best Management Practices for the East Coast Shellfish Aquaculture Industry In depth document created to provide the information and a framework that will enable a shellfish farmer to write a comprehensive Best Management Practices document focusing on gear/operation and maintenance, user conflicts, permitting/siting, and environmental concerns. 2024 East Coast Shellfish Growers Association
Visit Research, Development and Education Priorities for the Aquaculture Sector in Maine Research, Development and Education Priorities for the Aquaculture Sector in Maine 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. 2020 Maine Aquaculture Innovation Center
Visit State by State Summary of Shellfish Aquaculture Leasing/Permitting Requirements (2021) State by State Summary of Shellfish Aquaculture Leasing/Permitting Requirements (2021) This report provides an overview of permitting and leasing programs for aquaculture in U.S. state waters. However, it is strongly recommended that you speak with a local aquaculture representative prior to beginning your planning process. Aquaculture permitting is both complex and subject to frequent change. 2021 NOAA Fisheries
Visit Resources for Growers Resources for Growers DMR resources for growers including approved hatcheries, biosecurity, shellfish sanitation, harvest and reporting, and forms. 2022 Maine DMR Division of Aquaculture
Visit State by State Summary of Shellfish Aquaculture Leasing/Permitting Rules and Production Data State by State Summary of Shellfish Aquaculture Leasing/Permitting Rules and Production Data Details the specific regulations, contacts, information sources and production estimates for each of the 22 coastal states. 2019 East Coast Growers Association
Visit Maine Online Licensing System (LEEDS) Maine Online Licensing System (LEEDS) The Maine Department of Marine Resources' online licensing and landings system, called LEEDS (Licensing Enforcement and Environmental Data System) is now available. In order to apply for a new license or renew a license with the system, you first need to create a login for LEEDS 2022 Maine Department of Marine Resources
Visit The Maine Aquaculturist’s Pocket Guide: Selling Shellfish The Maine Aquaculturist’s Pocket Guide: Selling Shellfish A basic list of what licenses you need to sell your aquaculture shellfish at your home, at your lease site, to your local grocery/general store, roadside, to a restaurant, to a wholesale distributor, at a farmers market, or out of state. 2022 The Maine Aquaculturist
Visit The Maine Aquaculturist’s Guide- Selling Shellfish Flowchart The Maine Aquaculturist’s Guide- Selling Shellfish Flowchart This flowchart maps the different licenses you need to have to sell your aquaculture shellfish out of state by mail or by vehicle, and in the state of Maine including selling direct to restaurants, and wholesale distributors, at a farmer's market, your home, and your lease site. 2022 The Maine Aquaculturist
Visit Shellfish Dealer Application Forms Shellfish Dealer Application Forms Licenses AND Sanitation Certificates must be applied for online! This is new and the preferred system for applications now. This includes Shellstock Shipper Certificate, Shucker-Packer Certificate, Shellfish Reshipper Certificate, and Depuration Processor Certificate. 2024 Maine DMR Bureau of Public Health
Looking for Gear? This is a list of aquaculture gear and service businesses including oyster gear, mussel gear, seaweed gear, scallop gear, general marine gear, marine services (moorings/diving/boat repair) harvest/processing gear, and water monitoring gear. Lists were compiled by surveying Maine aquaculturists. 2022 The Maine Aquaculturist