American Aquafarms has formally submitted two draft lease applications with the Department of Marine Resources in the U.S. state of Maine, but opposition to its proposal is mounting.
In October 2020, the Portland, Maine, U.S.A.-based start-up announced its intention to build a closed net-pen Atlantic salmon farm near the town of Gouldsboro, Maine, with an annual capacity of 30,000 metric tons. Later that month, it purchased the 11-acre site home to the 100,000-square-foot Maine Fair Trade Lobster facility owned by East Coast Seafood Group and said it intended to build a hatchery, fish farm facilities, and a state-of-the art processing plant on the site.
Maine Department of Marine Resources Communications Director Jeff Nichols confirmed to SeafoodSource that the company’s draft applications have been received.
“We need to review them to determine if they are adequate to move forward with public scoping sessions,” he said. “Then we’ll then post them on the DMR website.”
In November, American Aquafarms had a mandatory pre-application meeting with DMR officials and representatives of the town of Gouldsboro, where the company introduced its proposal and heard from the municipal officers about their environmental baselines and characterization requirements for the project, according to Nichols. The company also introduced the project to the public at a Gouldsboro selectmen’s meeting on 15 October.
Nichols said in addition to the leases American Aquafarms is applying for, the project may also need a discharge permit from the Department of Environmental Protection, a DMR permit to import fish into the facility, a transfer permit to sell or transfer fish in Maine, and a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, depending on which gear the company chooses to bring to the site.
The draft lease applications are for two sites in Frenchman Bay, and DMR has 30 days to determine if the application meets its standard to proceed to a scoping session. After the scoping session, the state moves to a full application review, site visit, and report, and public hearing before making a final determination, according to a press release from American Aquafarms.
“Maine is the ideal location for this project,” American Aquafarms Founder and CEO Mikael Roenes said. “By leveraging the state’s deep-water assets with next generation eco-friendly technology to sustainably produce food close to its market, we have the opportunity to set a new standard in the United States. Additionally, we are confident that Maine has the workforce we need to fill the year-round, high-quality jobs we’re creating.”
In its application and its public communications, American Aquafarms is touting its choice of a a closed-pen system “that addresses major challenges in the traditional aquaculture industry by controlling waste and preventing escapes.”
“This emergent technology will complement Maine’s maritime heritage while augmenting production of high-quality, sustainable seafood,” it said.
However, two local groups have emerged to oppose American Aquafarms’ proposal: Protect Maine's Fishing Heritage Foundation and Frenchman Bay Partners. Ted O’Meara, a public affairs consultant working with the latter group, previously told SeafoodSource he is unconvinced American Aquafarms’ closed-pen technology will be able to safeguard the environment in Frenchman’s Bay.
Crystal Canney, the executive director of Protect Maine's Fishing Heritage Foundation, told SeafoodSource her group is “Very concerned about how American Aquafarms is approaching the local communities and their level of transparency
“The fact that this would be sited around a growing number of aquaculture leases and the fact that it’s at the foot of Acadia National Park is a no for us,” she said. “We’ll always leave door open for discussion but we have not seen them make significant changes we know of to date. We also feel DMR is not equipped to oversee this process or monitor it if it were to get approved.”
Canney said her group has worked with State Rep. Robert W. Alley Sr. to introduce L.R. 1262, "An Act To Protect Maine's Ocean Waters and Support Regulatory Oversight and the Long-Term Health of the Aquaculture Industry,” which on 18 March was referred to the legislature’s Committee on Marine Resources for review. According to Canney, the bill limits the number of acres a private entity can lease for aquaculture in the state of Maine, and places restrictions on lease transfers.
“It’s time in the state of Maine for us to take a hard look at use of the public trust. The aquaculture industry has grown considerably here and DMR does not have adequate staffing to conduct appropriate oversight,” she said.
American Aquafarms did not respond to questions from SeafoodSource regarding its public outreach efforts or how it will be incorporating community feedback into its project development.
Canney said the large project will exacerbate mounting tensions between the aquaculture sector and the traditional fishing industry in Maine.
“All you have to do is look at an application that is being submitted in Gouldsboro for over 100 acres of in-water salmon pens, to see the conflict being created between corporate aquaculture and lobstermen and women,” she said.
Photo courtesy of American Aquafarms
