Brunswick panel briefed on harmful algal bloom in Maquoit Bay

The Rivers and Coastal Waters Commission met September 23 and received a detailed update from Coastal Resource Manager Chris Bollester on a harmful algal bloom of Karenia mikimotoi affecting Maquoit Bay and other Brunswick waters. The bloom has caused major shellfish mortality, and Maquoit Bay's intertidal areas are closed to shellfish harvesting. The commission also heard updates on dam relicensing and culvert projects and adjourned without votes.

Key points

• Bollester reported the bloom has spread across the Gulf of Maine and caused the largest shellfish mortality event he has seen in 35 years in Brunswick, with soft-shell clams hit hardest.
• The shellfish committee held an emergency meeting and requested that the Department of Marine Resources close Maquoit Bay to shellfish harvesting; DMR enacted the closure for intertidal areas.
• The town hired consultant Matt Nixon to monitor dissolved oxygen over mudflats in Harpswell Cove, Long Reach, Thomas Point Beach, Maquoit Bay, Middle Bay and Bunganuck.
• Bollester said the bloom is breaking up, but decomposition is causing low dissolved oxygen and anoxic, blackened mud, with dead worms, crabs and other marine life reported.
• The commission heard a letter from Free the Andro urging support for improved fish passage in the upcoming Brookfield dam relicensing, with a January 2027 comment deadline.
• Councilor Rich Ellis reported the Coombs Road culvert project is moving forward with a single 24-foot culvert, while the Jordan Avenue culvert project is postponed due to a supply delay.

Next steps

• Continue monitoring dissolved oxygen and cell counts, with an update expected at a future meeting on comparisons to the 2017 bloom.
• Free the Andro seeks volunteers with dam relicensing, legal, outreach or database experience; contact Tom Whalick.
• The commission will review and approve meeting minutes at its next meeting.

Read the full transcript