Category: Coastal News

Summer 2021: Recreational Boating Trends

5/21/2021 - As we head into summer and COVID restrictions lift; harbors and waterways are expected to be significantly busier than in years past. Our friends at SeaTow just released some interesting new findings from their Summer 2021 Boating Trends Survey. Pandemic-influenced boating behavior: 52% of boaters surveyed anticipate their boating activity… SEE MORE

Safety 101: How to Choose the Right Life Jacket

5/20/2021 - By USGC. U.S. Coast Guard life jacket requirements for recreational vessels: A wearable life jacket for each person must be aboard. These life jackets must be… • U. S. Coast Guard approved • The proper size for the intended wearer • In good and serviceable condition • Properly stowed (readily… SEE MORE

VA National Guard Soldies patrol Norfolk following Hurricane Sandy (Oct. 29, 2012). ©Sgt. 1st Class A.J. Coyne, Virginia Guard

Study: Climate Change Added $8 Billion to Sandy’s Damages

5/19/2021 - By Seth Borenstein / AP News. Climate change-triggered sea level rise added $8 billion in damage during 2012’s Superstorm Sandy, one of nation’s costliest weather disasters, a new study said. During Sandy — a late fall freak combination of a hurricane and other storms that struck New York and surrounding areas —… SEE MORE

Image Courtesy of Capt. Shawn Brule of TowBoatUS, Cape Cod and Plymouth.

News from Our Coasts: May 2021

5/18/2021 - NEWS & UPDATES FOR MAY Updates from US Harbors News & Virtual Events from Our Partners Updates from Our Coastal Business Community Photos of the Month Updates from US Harbors Don't forget to cast your vote for the Best Harbor in the US. The winning harbors will be announced on… SEE MORE

Baby Seals Popping Up Around PNW Coast – Caution Advised

5/17/2021 - By Oregon Coast Beach Connection. Little baby harbor seals are showing up all over the Oregon coast and it’s time again for Oregon officials to issue the warning: stay away from baby seals. Seaside Aquarium’s Tiffany Boothe said they are currently monitoring three different pups in their area, which includes… SEE MORE

The Hopewell Dam, located just off Hopewell Street in Taunton, Massachusetts, once powered turbines for a manufacturing plant.

Water Crisis ‘Couldn’t be Worse’ on Oregon-California Border

5/17/2021 - PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — The water crisis along the California-Oregon border went from dire to catastrophic this week as federal regulators shut off irrigation water to farmers from a critical reservoir and said they would not send extra water to dying salmon downstream or to a half-dozen wildlife refuges that… SEE MORE

Maine’s COVID-19 Vaccine Incentive Program

Coastal News

5/16/2021 - The State of Maine has launched an outdoor-centered incentive program aimed at encouraging Maine people to get vaccinated against COVID-19 before the summer season begins. The public-private initiative, called “Your Shot to Get Outdoors,” is led by the Maine Department of Health and Human Services and brings together the Maine… SEE MORE

Free Offices with a View: 4 Lighthouses, Courtesy of Feds

Coastal News

5/16/2021 - PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Dreading your eventual return to the office? The federal government is making available — for free — some waterfront workspaces with killer views that are sure to entice. But there’s a catch. The General Services Administration says the U.S. Coast Guard has decided it no longer… SEE MORE

Pandemic-hit Oyster Farmers Turn to Conservation to Survive

5/15/2021 - By Michael Casey. DURHAM, N.H. (AP) — When the pandemic struck last year, oyster farmer Chris Burtis soon realized the restaurants that bought his oysters had mostly closed. Without a new market, his Ferda Farms faced potential economic ruin. Then, Burtis heard The Nature Conservancy in partnership with The Pew… SEE MORE

Maryland Department of Natural Resources

Invasive Fish from Conowingo Dam Donated to Food Banks

5/14/2021 - The Conowingo Dam employs fish lifts to help migrating fish species navigate the Susquehanna River to their spawning grounds, but the lifts also catch unwelcomed fish – invasive catfish and snakehead. Through a public-private partnership between the Maryland Department of Resources (DNR), dam owner Exelon Corp., the Maryland Department of… SEE MORE

Conowingo Dam