BANGOR DAILY NEWS • September 28, 2020
Despite the threat climate change poses to longstanding Maine fisheries such as lobsters and softshell clams, and the harm it already has inflicted on northern shrimp and groundfish, there is one Maine fishery that has seen rapid growth in the past decade and is expected to continue expanding: oysters. Out of 185 permitted commercial-scale aquaculture lease sites listed on the Maine Department of Marine Resources website, 98 are licensed for growing oysters. Three more sites in Hancock County and two more on the Damariscotta River are scheduled to be reviewed at public meetings next month. Bill Mook, who founded Mook Sea Farm on the Damariscotta River in 1985, said climate change has been a mixed bag for oyster growers.