Resources Database

This guide was created to help the emerging seaweed industry understand the prevailing regulatory requirements surrounding the production of seaweeds as food. There are currently two regulations that are being used to regulate seaweeds at either the federal or state level: the Current Good Manufacturing Practice, Hazard Analysis, and Risk-Based Preventive Controls for Human Food (GMP/PCHF) regulation and the Seafood Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point regulation. This guide will help the reader understand the similarities and differences between the two regulations and help the reader understand how their operation might be regulated.

List of the over 200 harbor masters and deputy harbor masters in The State of Maine Harbor Masters Association.

This report addresses biofouling management in relation to marine aquaculture industry operations, equipment and infrastructure. It covers shellfish, finfish and seaweed operations in estuaries and seawater. It does not address freshwater aquaculture activities.

Answers questions like "What can I grow?", "How much space can I occupy?" "How long does a lease or license last?", "How much will it cost?", "What type of gear can I use?", and more.

DMR resources for growers including approved hatcheries, biosecurity, shellfish sanitation, harvest and reporting, and forms.

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

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.

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.

Maine aquaculture marking requirements (effective January 1, 2023) for lease sites and LPA sites with a sample marker buoy image.

Lists all upcoming aquaculture public meetings, hearings, and scoping sessions and give the date, time, town and location for them.

This flowchart visually maps out the Maine DMR Limited Purpose Aquaculture (LPA) application process.

This flowchart visually maps out the Maine DMR Standard Lease application process.

This flowchart visually maps out the Maine DMR Experimental Lease application process.

This DMR page includes Experimental Lease Application, Riparian List form, Corporate Applicant Form, Renewal Application for Scientific Research Experimental Lease, and Experimental Lease Laws and Regulations.

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.

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.

List all laws and regulations related to aquaculture in the state of Maine.

The Maine Department of Marine Resources' online licensing and landings system, called LEEDS (Licensing Enforcement and Environmental Data System) is now available. In order to apply for a new license or renew a license with the system, you first need to create a login for LEEDS

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

If you have been around this business for a while, you’ve probably watched some of the newcomers make the same mistakes you did when you were getting started. ECSGA Executive Director Bob Rheault decided he would try to think of as many of these common pitfalls as he could to help new growers avoid making the same costly blunders. Through the years he has continued to add to the list.

This report provides an overview of permitting and leasing programs for aquaculture in U.S. state waters. However, it is strongly recommended that you speak with a local aquaculture representative prior to beginning your planning process. Aquaculture permitting is both complex and subject to frequent change.

Animal protein production must increase by 40-50% to feed a projected global population of 9 billion by 2050. The United States can be a significant contributor to global seafood production due to its recognized: Rigorous regulatory framework to promote sustainable development, Advanced animal nutrition and health management, Efficient processing and distribution of high-quality seafood, and Unwavering technical innovation.

A look at the individual Maine farmers who make a living in the growing industry of Aquaculture.