Committee backs Sen. Grohoski bill to protect Maine coastal waters from pollution from industrial finfish farms
AUGUSTA — On Wednesday, the Legislature’s Environment and Natural Resources Committee voted in favor of a bill from Sen. Nicole Grohoski, D-Ellsworth, that would protect Maine’s coastal waters and working waterfronts. An amended version of LD 508, “Resolve, Directing the Department of Environmental Protection to Review Its Environmental Permitting Laws,” received a vote of 8-3.
“This bill is a clear demonstration of what we can accomplish when we truly listen to the concerns of our neighbors. In Maine, our economy is reliant on our natural resources. Maine’s lobstermen and others who work out of harbors every day are experts on what’s happening with our coastal waters. Their voices must be heard, uplifted and trusted,” said Sen. Grohoski. “On-water finfish farming is not what it was decades ago. Nor are our coastal marine environments as healthy as they once were. This bill will move Maine in the right direction as we ensure our regulations are up-to-date with modern practices, so we can protect the health of our cold, clean waters.”
The amended version of the bill directs the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to review state laws and rules regulating the licensing of waste discharges from proposed finfish aquaculture facilities, including any waste discharge modeling requirements or standards. The Department would also review the waste discharge monitoring requirements previously imposed on these facilities, and provide an explanation for any removal of those requirements. DEP would then develop recommendations for minimum standards for waste discharge modeling required as part of a license application for a finfish aquaculture facility.
DEP would submit a report by Jan. 15, 2024 to legislators summarizing its review and provide any recommendations, including any proposed legislation, resulting from the review. The Environment and Natural Resources Committee could then report out legislation relating to the report to be considered during the Second Regular Session of the 131st Legislature.
In a show of overwhelming support, lobstermen, clammers, environmental advocates and local officials all provided testimony urging passage of this critically important bill. The public waters off the coast of Downeast Maine are beginning to attract large, industrial scale aquaculture proposals. In 2020, a foreign-owned company announced its intention to develop a massive salmon farm in Frenchman Bay, in Hancock County, to produce 66 million pounds of fish annually. This bill would begin the process of ensuring that state government is effectively protecting Maine waters and natural resources from potentially catastrophic impacts of this type of development.
LD 508 is one of a few bills about finfish aquaculture that the Legislature is considering this session.
Sen. Grohoski represents Maine Senate District 7, which includes Bar Harbor, Blue Hill, Brooklin, Brooksville, Castine, Cranberry Isles, Deer Isle, Ellsworth, Frenchboro, Isle au Haut, Lamoine, Mount Desert, Orland, Penobscot, Sedgwick, Southwest Harbor, Stonington, Surry, Swan’s Island, Tremont, Trenton, and Verona Island.
