You’re invited to River Herring: Open for Harvest
Hosted by Alewife Harvesters of Maine
When: Thursday September 14th from 9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Where: Jeff’s Catering in Brewer
For meeting documents contact Sarah Madronal, sarah@mainesalmonrivers.org or follow this link.
Join us for a day focused on river herring restoration work and other efforts to open river herring runs for harvest in Maine. Come hear about restoration success stories as well as past and current efforts to open harvest runs across the state. The purpose of this meeting is to discuss what success looks like for river herring restoration and explore how we can get there together as individuals, communities, organizations and government with shared knowledge of all of the issues, management practices, and mutually understood expectations for next steps to open river herring harvests and continue river restoration work. Mike Brown, Department of Marine Resources, will give a presentation on the how to’s and current management practices of opening a river herring harvest run with a facilitated question and answer period. All are welcome and we encourage all who are involved in the river herring fishery in Maine to come and share their experiences opening or continuing river herring harvests.
Alewife Harvesters of Maine would like to thank our partners for sponsoring this meeting including, Department of Marine Resources, Downeast Fisheries Partnership, Downeast Salmon Federation, and Maine Center for Coastal Fisheries.
Agenda
9:00 Welcome and Focus for the Day – Jeff Pierce, AHOM
9:10 Working Together Today
Develop Working Agreements
9:15 Making Restoration Happen
Panel members reflect on their experiences restoring runs
- Panelists: Nate Gray (DMR), Anne Hayden (DFP), Jeff Pierce (AHOM), Dwayne Shaw (DSF), and Mike Thalhauser (MCCF)
10:30 Stretch break
10:45 Identify What Leads to Success
Break into table discussions with panel members around the questions:
- What does success look like? How do we define it?
- What can we learn from our collective experiences about:
- The elements that fuel success?
- The roadblocks?
- What are the big statewide questions that we want to answer?
Table facilitators will write responses on flip charts and post them
11:35 The Story of Opening a Recent River Herring Run – Darrell Young
12:00 Buffett lunch
12:45 Process and Regulations for Setting up a River Herring Run
Mike Brown, DMR – Presentation (30 minutes), Q & A including topics from the morning session (45 minutes)
2:00 Identify Major Elements of What Success Looks Like
From the table discussions and Darrell’s Donnell Pond project, summarize what we are aiming for and how we can incorporate into existing/future projects
2:30 Common Understanding of Next Steps and Accountability
What needs to happen next? Who will do what? How will accountability work?
2:50 Closing Remarks – Jeff Pierce, AHOM
3:00 Conclude
Please contact Sarah Madronal for more information and RSVP to sarah@mainesalmonrivers.org. Feel free to share this meeting announcement with anyone who may be interested.
Last Updated: March 1, 2025 by S Leave a Comment
Upcoming Bills
There are three bills being heard on March 6th that may impact Alewife harvesters:
LD 325 – An Act Related to the Disbursement of Revenue Generated from the Harvesting of River Herring
https://legislature.maine.gov/billtracker/#Paper/325?legislature=132
LD 553 – An Act to Assert State Sovereignty over Ocean Waters and Marine Resources up to 12 Nautical Miles off the State’s Coast
https://legislature.maine.gov/billtracker/#Paper/553?legislature=132
LD 687 – An Act to Assert State Ownership over Ocean Waters up to 12 Nautical Miles and Submerged Lands and Marine Resources up to 24 Nautical Miles off the State’s Coast and to Direct the Attorney General to Study That Ownership
https://legislature.maine.gov/billtracker/#Paper/687?legislature=132
Posted: March 1, 2025 by S Leave a Comment
5 New runs added in 2025
https://www.maine.gov/dmr/news/tue-02252025-1200-additional-commercial-river-herring-fisheries-approved-maine
Posted: October 18, 2023 by admin
AHOM Testifies Before ASMFC River Herring and Shad Management Board
Madam Chair Fegley,
It is with my pleasure that I come here today to represent the Alewife Harvesters of Maine(AHOM) as the River Herring and Shad Management Board takes on the important task of creating a benchmark stock assessment for these keystone species of the marine ecosystem, but also to coastal fishing communities and fishermen up and down the coast.
This stock assessment is something that is of the upmost importance to the Alewife Harvesters of Maine because we are fortunate enough to still be beneficiaries of healthy runs throughout our state, making our cultural and economic connections strong.
It is my hope that if you remember anything from my testimony today, that it be this: It may be counter-intuitive, but it is not a strange coincidence that the healthiest fish runs, and strongholds for these species are in the same place that we directly harvest the majority of river herring in our country. In fact, it is BECAUSE of this harvest, and this connection to these fish, that we have undertaken the difficult work to restore, to monitor and to locally manage river herring.
It is this connection of ours, to these fish, that makes this stock assessment and the decisions that follow, of such importance to us, and why we would like to be considered in the document and in the discussion.
Stock assessments are a place to look at a resource as a whole. They look at ecological connections and activities that make fish and that take fish, and then are the basis for how we make decisions. Assessments have not taken into account the human dimension and connection, and we believe that is a mistake.
We urge this board to make certain that the technical committee and stock assessment staff look at these human connections. Look at the benefits of stewardship connected to harvest. Look at what has been done in Maine (by harvesters and other stewards) to restore habitat and monitor and to make fish, and find ways to incentivize those beneficial connections and activities, in the same way that they would disincentivize a practice that harms fish populations.
The current metrics that are in place for alewife harvesters to be able to prosecute a fishery, act more as a deterrent to monitoring and data collection, than as an incentive.
We believe that Maine’s socio-economic and cultural connection to these fish is directly related to the work that we have done in monitoring and restoring these fish. Our connection to these fish, and the successes we have had in making fish, should be used as an example of how fishermen and managers can share goals and objectives and work together. But we need to be considered, and that is what we ask for today.
Sincerely,
Jeffrey Pierce, Executive Director
Posted: June 3, 2021 by S Leave a Comment
Remembering Ed Courtenay
With heavy hearts, we had to say goodbye to our dear friend and Board Member, Ed Courtenay (pictured to the far left). Our deepest condolences go out to his family and loved ones. Ed made a big impact on his community and those lucky enough to be around him. He was a longtime Fish Warden to the Town of Warren and contributed greatly to our organization’s efforts. He will be dearly missed by all of us at Alewife Harvesters of Maine.
Posted: March 2, 2020 by S Leave a Comment
Join us at the 2020 Maine Fishermen’s Forum!
We hope to see everyone at the Forum. Our Annual meeting will take place on Saturday morning (details below) and we will have a booth on both Friday and Saturday. Come say hello and tell us about your River Herring restoration work, how your River Herring Harvest is going or anything else you want to share about River Herring. See you there!
Annual Meeting at the Maine Fisherman’s Forum
March 7th 2020, 10:30am – 12:00pm, At the Golf Club at the Samoset Resort
Agenda:
10:30am Alewife Harvesters of Maine Business Meeting,
Treasurer’s Report and board members introduction
10:40am The Road to 50 Million Alewives!
Three organizations will present on some of the progress made to restore river herring to Maine’s coast in 2019.
Landis Hudson, Maine Rivers
Brett Ciccotelli, Downeast Salmon Federation
Nate Gray, Department of Marine Resources, on behalf of the Alewife Interaction Committee
11:25am Department of Marine Resources update
Updates on any Federal or State rule changes, restoration projects from 2019 and Department priorities looking forward in 2020.
Last Updated: February 25, 2019 by S Leave a Comment
2019 Maine Fishermen’s Forum
The Maine Fishermen’s Forum is HERE! Alewife Harvesters of Maine will be there with a booth and our annual session. Our session will be:
Saturday March 2nd from 10:30 am – 12:00 pm
Golf Club Room
Samoset Resort – 220 Warren Street, Rockport, ME 04856
We will be discussing the status of our fishery and river herring restoration efforts across our state. Your participation in our session is essential to our goal of collaboratively restoring 54 million river herring to Maine rivers.
Have you been working on river herring restoration? Please come to our booth and tell us about it; put your pin on our map. We hope to see you there and talk alewives!
Last Updated: July 12, 2018 by S Leave a Comment
11th Annual Alewife Harvesters of Maine Pig Roast!
Last Updated: June 20, 2018 by S Leave a Comment
River Herring Commercial Harvests
Are you looking for fresh bait this spring? River herring, alewives and blueback herring, are a good source of bait for lobster and halibut fishing. River herring are typically harvested in May until early June.
Below are a list of all towns that currently harvest river herring commercially:
Posted: November 20, 2017 by S 2 Comments
LD 922: Support fish passage in Sheepscot Pond
Representative Jeffrey Pierce and fisheries activist Bailey Bowden of Penobscot, ME have a call to action to allow passage of river herring and other fish into Sheepscot Pond. For more information contact Jeffrey Pierce at jeffrey@alewifeharvesters.org or (207) 441-3006.
LD 922: An Act Directing the Commissioner of Marine Resources To Investigate the Conditions of Sheepscot Pond Related to a Management Plan for Anadromous Fish Species. Read the bill in full: http://bit.ly/2A1zKjh
If you would like to contact your local legislator click this link: http://legislature.maine.gov/house/townlist.htm
If you would like to contact anyone from the Marine Resources Committee of the Legislature click this link: http://legislature.maine.gov/house/jt_com/mar.htm
Last Updated: September 26, 2018 by S Leave a Comment
River Herring: Open for Harvest
You’re invited to River Herring: Open for Harvest
Hosted by Alewife Harvesters of Maine
When: Thursday September 14th from 9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Where: Jeff’s Catering in Brewer
For meeting documents contact Sarah Madronal, sarah@mainesalmonrivers.org or follow this link.
Join us for a day focused on river herring restoration work and other efforts to open river herring runs for harvest in Maine. Come hear about restoration success stories as well as past and current efforts to open harvest runs across the state. The purpose of this meeting is to discuss what success looks like for river herring restoration and explore how we can get there together as individuals, communities, organizations and government with shared knowledge of all of the issues, management practices, and mutually understood expectations for next steps to open river herring harvests and continue river restoration work. Mike Brown, Department of Marine Resources, will give a presentation on the how to’s and current management practices of opening a river herring harvest run with a facilitated question and answer period. All are welcome and we encourage all who are involved in the river herring fishery in Maine to come and share their experiences opening or continuing river herring harvests.
Alewife Harvesters of Maine would like to thank our partners for sponsoring this meeting including, Department of Marine Resources, Downeast Fisheries Partnership, Downeast Salmon Federation, and Maine Center for Coastal Fisheries.
Agenda
9:00 Welcome and Focus for the Day – Jeff Pierce, AHOM
9:10 Working Together Today
Develop Working Agreements
9:15 Making Restoration Happen
Panel members reflect on their experiences restoring runs
10:30 Stretch break
10:45 Identify What Leads to Success
Break into table discussions with panel members around the questions:
Table facilitators will write responses on flip charts and post them
11:35 The Story of Opening a Recent River Herring Run – Darrell Young
12:00 Buffett lunch
12:45 Process and Regulations for Setting up a River Herring Run
Mike Brown, DMR – Presentation (30 minutes), Q & A including topics from the morning session (45 minutes)
2:00 Identify Major Elements of What Success Looks Like
From the table discussions and Darrell’s Donnell Pond project, summarize what we are aiming for and how we can incorporate into existing/future projects
2:30 Common Understanding of Next Steps and Accountability
What needs to happen next? Who will do what? How will accountability work?
2:50 Closing Remarks – Jeff Pierce, AHOM
3:00 Conclude
Please contact Sarah Madronal for more information and RSVP to sarah@mainesalmonrivers.org. Feel free to share this meeting announcement with anyone who may be interested.
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