Resources Database

The aquaculture harvest license authorizes LPA and lease holders to sell product harvested from their sites. If you are selling product from any of your aquaculture sites, you need to obtain an aquaculture harvester license.

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.

The Aquaculture License is now required in order to harvest and sell cultured organisms removed from an aquaculture lease or LPA license site. Aquaculture leaseholders and Limited-Purpose Aquaculture (LPA) license holders are required to obtain the Aquaculture License, regardless of which species they grow.

Comprehensive information on aquaculture leases and Limited-Purpose Aquaculture (LPA) licenses, including details on active and denied lease decisions, pending applications, and interactive data tables with links to maps and documents.

Answers basic questions about Maine DMR's Aquaculture Harvest License such as: Who should have it?, What is it? What does it cost?, What does this license allow you to do?, How do I apply?, and Who should I contact with questions?

This DMR page includes LPA License Applications for new LPAs, Riparian List form, Additional Information to assist in completing LPA license application forms, Sample Gear Plans and Vicinity Maps, Sample Mooring Designs, LPA Laws and Regulations, and LPA and Quiz Supporting Documents.

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

A list that contains the names of markets and restaurants that are licensed to purchase shellfish directly from harvesters, then sell them in the retail trade only.

This brochure reviews what Vibrio is and how to reduce illness from Vibrio by achieving and maintaining temperature controls when harvesting and transporting shellfish.

All wild shellfish stock or seed used for cultivation or grow-out must originate from within the same Limited Purpose Aquaculture (LPA) license Health Zone as the LPA license site. A permit is required from DMR if the stock or seed originates from outside the Health Zone.

Social license to operate (SLO), a concept that describes community acceptance and approval of incoming industry, offers a lens for better understanding these barriers and an opportunity to identify strategies for successful development. Efforts to measure and predict social license have begun, but these efforts primarily focus on company actions and impacts. This study seeks to expand the utility of social license within the aquaculture sector by developing a preliminary quantitative framework that can predict a community’s willingness to issue SLO prior to siting.

Provides confidential and comprehensive location and business services for aquaculture companies looking to locate or expand in the state.

A non-profit trade association that represents the Maine aquaculture industry at the state, federal, and international levels.

Matt Parker, aquaculture business specialist, presents basic business concepts such as writing a business plan, developing pro forma statements, costs associated production, and record keeping to determine the costs of production.

Aquaculture risk management fact sheet covering the types of risks aquaculturists deal with and how to manage these risks include both insurance and non-insurance options.

Provides a unified national voice for aquaculture on the national level as well as informative webinars, publications, and facts about aquaculture.

Lists contact information for DMR’s aquaculture program staff who are located in Augusta and the Boothbay Harbor Lab.

The council consists of 5 members make recommendations to the commissioner concerning expenditures from the Aquaculture Management Fund.

Includes the common definition and the legal definition of aquaculture in Maine.

Displays location and information on aquaculture leases and licenses in Maine along with NSSP water quality information and p90 scores, LPA Health Zones, IFW Essential Habitat Boundaries, historic eelgrass data, conserved land information, and low tide imagery.

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

Provides advising and financing to fisheries and aquaculture businesses to improve their long-term viability, create and maintain quality jobs, safeguard marine-related infrastructure and environments, and help preserve the cultural integrity of Maine’s working waterfront.

This training program uses a mix of meetings and field trips/site visits to introduce participants to the issues important in running a successful aquaculture business including: site selection, equipment and husbandry, permitting and regulation, environmental monitoring, marketing and sales, farm management and biosecurity, business planning, and financial management.