Kay Neufeld

Portland

Business Reporter at The Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram

Beyoncé fanatic/major yenta reporting on labor and lobstering in Maine @ the Portland Press Herald - they/them - Tips @ [email protected]

Articles

Orange baby lobsters, the rarest of their kind, find a new home in Maine's ocean

2 days ago | yahoo.com | Kay Neufeld

May 12—BIDDEFORD — With steady hands and firmly planted feet, students at the University of New England gently lowered tiny orange lobsters, no bigger than their thumbs, into the cold salt water. UNE's marine biology students had stepped in as "foster parents" for 30 baby lobsters since they were hatched last year. And the time for reunification with the sea had now come.
Feds cut $9M for Downeast coastal restoration project

6 days ago | yahoo.com | Kay Neufeld

May 8—Maine has lost $9 million it was awarded to reduce flooding and restore fish habitats Downeast as part of the Trump administration's continued efforts to cut federal spending. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration notified the Maine Department of Marine Resources in April that the project was an "overuse of taxpayer dollars" and no longer "relevant" to the administration's priorities.
'Fisherman core' is the latest fashion fad. Here's what Mainers think.

1 week ago | yahoo.com | Kay Neufeld

May 7—ROCKPORT — Designer lobster bags rumored to sell for $18,000. Silk couture fishing bibs with a cleavage-friendly neckline. Woven leather sandals. Sardine tattoos peeking out from underneath cable knit sweaters. Handmade trawler coats made from recycled polyester.
Maine gives lobstermen a chance to inform future of fishery

2 weeks ago | yahoo.com | Kay Neufeld

Apr. 29—AUGUSTA — After years of feeling overlooked, Maine lobstermen will get the opportunity to inform government data in a state-run survey addressing their views on the future of the fishery. The Lobster Advisory Council approved the move at a meeting Tuesday based on a proposal from the Department of Marine Resources, which wants to complete the survey as soon as possible.
UMaine's offshore wind projects were nearly complete when the Trump administration ordered them to stop work

3 weeks ago | yahoo.com | Kay Neufeld

Apr. 24—The federal government has directed the University of Maine to halt activity on $15.8 million in offshore wind research projects, including a floating turbine that is over a decade in the making and weeks away from a final launch off the coast of Castine. The University of Maine System received a letter from the U.S. Department of Energy on April 11 saying it was suspending the projects for "failure to comply" with the terms of the award, but did not specify what those failures were.
Maine's new cold storage facility is at the center of a legal battle over millions in unpaid bills

3 weeks ago | yahoo.com | Kay Neufeld

Apr. 23—Several construction companies say they haven't been paid for millions of dollars of work on a large, refrigerated warehouse that recently opened on Portland's waterfront and is meant to boost Maine's food and beverage exports. Local subcontractors Epoxy Floors North, Gorham Sand and Gravel, and H.B. Fleming put liens on the property for a total of $1.5 million of work they said went unpaid at the Maine International Cold Storage Facility.
Environmental group to purchase land once eyed for Belfast salmon farm

3 weeks ago | yahoo.com | Kay Neufeld

Apr. 21—An environmental conservation nonprofit that fought to prevent a $500 million salmon farm from opening in Belfast is set to purchase the land the farm would have operated on. Upstream Watch is under contract to purchase the 54-acre property from Nordic Aquafarms, the Norwegian developer behind the controversial aquaculture project.
Gulf of Maine scallop fishery set to reopen Monday

3 weeks ago | yahoo.com | Kay Neufeld

Apr. 18—A federal agency has passed the ruling needed to reopen federal scallop fishing in the Gulf of Maine, just under a week after it was forced to close because of delays in finalizing annual catch limits. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced Friday afternoon that fishermen will be allowed to resume scalloping on Monday through the remainder of the season — which ends once a certain amount are caught.
Gulf of Maine scallop fishery likely to close for first time in over 15 years

1 month ago | savingseafood.org | Kay Neufeld

April 10, 2025 — Fishermen are likely to be restricted from hauling scallops from federal waters in the Gulf of Maine for several weeks because regulators have delayed finalizing annual catch limits. The temporary closure, expected in the next five days, would mark the first time the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has shut down the regional fishery midseason since the regulations were put into place 16 years ago.
Gulf of Maine scallop fishery likely to close for first time in over 15 years

1 month ago | yahoo.com | Kay Neufeld

Apr. 10—Fishermen are likely to be restricted from hauling scallops from federal waters in the Gulf of Maine for several weeks because regulators have delayed finalizing annual catch limits. The temporary closure, expected in the next five days, would mark the first time the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has shut down the regional fishery midseason since the regulations were put into place 16 years ago.