A 26-year veteran of the DMR and the agency's long-time lead lobster biologist, Wilson would replace Commissioner Patrick Keliher following his retirement

Governor Janet Mills announced today that she will nominate Carl Wilson, a highly regarded fisheries scientist at the Maine Department of Marine Resources for the last 26 years, to serve as the department's next commissioner.

The Department of Marine Resources, in cooperation with the Gulf of Maine Lobster Foundation, seeks two industry participants for the Regional Ventless Trap Program through a competitive bid process. This is an opportunity to participate in a cooperative research project between industry and scientists from Maine through Rhode Island.

The Commercial Fishing Safety Council will hold a meeting from 1:00pm-2:30pm on Saturday, March 1, 2025 in the Maine Marine Patrol Office Conference Room at the Rockland Ferry Terminal, 517A, Rockland.

An agenda for the meeting is attached to this notice.

Augusta - Efforts to restore and improve up and downstream passage for sea-run fish species on five Maine water bodies have provided several Maine towns with the opportunity to have a commercial river herring harvest.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s (ASMFC) American Shad and River Herring Management Board has approved commercial fishing opportunities for alewife and blueback herring, collectively known as river herring, on Sewall Pond, Wight Pond, the Pennamaquan River, Chemo pond and Pushaw Lake. 

West Boothbay Harbor - With four years of funding totaling $1.6 million from the Research, Education and Development (RED) Fund, the Department of Marine Resources (DMR) is undertaking an expanded lobster research initiative designed to engage more fishermen in data gathering and provide more consistent data characterizing the lobster fishery from federal waters.

Funding will allow more fishermen to participate in DMR’s Sea Sampling Program, which will increase the number of sampling trips and target sampling in both federal and state waters.

The Department of Marine Resources (DMR) is holding a public hearing on the aquaculture proposal listed below:

The Department of Marine Resources will hold a public hearing on Chapter 41 Atlantic Menhaden on March 11, 2025 at 5:00 pm in DMR’s Conference Room 118, Marquardt Building, 32 Blossom Lane, Augusta ME, and remotely via Microsoft Teams. 

The Department of Marine Resources will hold a public hearing on Chapter 36 Atlantic Herring on March 11, 2025 at 4:00 pm in DMR’s Conference Room 118, Marquardt Building, 32 Blossom Lane, Augusta ME, and remotely via Microsoft Teams. 

BRIEF SUMMARY: This proposed rulemaking places a cap on the total harvest of Atlantic herring in state waters of 200,000 pounds for the management period of June 1 through December 31.

A link to join the meeting remotely is below.

The hearing listed below has been cancelled and will be rescheduled.  Once the hearing has been rescheduled, the Department will provide notice in accordance with applicable law. 

The Department of Marine Resources (DMR) is holding a public hearing on the proposal listed below: