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Check in for Charity!
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Just enter your name and email (optional) below to earn $1 towards Damariscotta Mills Fish Ladder Restoration's work restoring historic fish passageways.
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For May, our nonprofit in the spotlight is the Damariscotta Mills Fish Ladder Restoration project, who at the moment we write this are waiting eagerly for the annual running of the alewives.
Damariscotta Mills is home of the state’s oldest and most productive Alewife fishery, and restoration of the fish ladder is critical to the health of the Damariscotta River alewife stocks.
The fish ladder in Damariscotta Mills has been in operation for over two hundred years. The fish ladder was originally built in dry laid stone on a seasonal overflow that was probably never a particularly efficient passageway for the fish as it followed the natural lay of the land, which is often steep and narrow. The fish ladder has undergone many repairs and renovations in its long history but none of them has been comprehensive or specifically designed for efficient fish passage.
Why Offer Access for Alewives?
Annual run of the alewives. Photo courtesy of Damariscotta Mills Fish Ladder Restoration.
Alewives are an important part of the food chain and they contribute to the health of the marine environment and to the lakes and streams where the fish spawn. In the spring, alewives are a critical source of fresh bait for local lobstermen who are setting out gear after a winter ashore.
The Towns of Newcastle & Nobleboro have harvested alewives since the 1700s and, by balancing conservation and economic goals, they have carefully tended the Damariscotta River alewife stocks. Today, all funds received for harvested alewives are spent to maintain and restore the fish ladder and harvesting area.
Noting the historical, environmental, and economic value of the alewives, the Towns of Nobleboro and Damariscotta Mills, and the Nobleboro Historical Society, backed by a solid community-based initiative, embarked on an ambitious project to rebuild the fish ladder in 2007. During the first phase, a deteriorated section of wall forty feet long and twelve feet high was removed and rebuilt. In 2008, an aggressive effort to rebuild one hundred and fifty feet of the run at the top of the ladder was initiated. The US Fish and Wildlife Service and the Maine Department of Marine Resources provided design services and technical support. Using new plans by Fish Ladder Engineer Curtis Orvis, the second phase of the project is being completed in time for the spring (2009) alewife run.
At present, the most deteriorated sections of the fish ladder have still to be addressed. The middle of the ladder, including more than 1,000 feet of stone walls, cannot easily be accessed by heavy machinery. Therefore, creative and innovative methods must be devised to remove the current crumbling pools and rebuild them to the new design specifications. This phase of the project, which will be implemented over the next three years, has an estimated price tag of $300,000 to $350,000.
Time to Check In!
You can help support Damariscotta Mills Fish Ladder Restoration in restoring this vital fish passage by participating in our Check in for Charity campaign. Fill in your name in the form below to earn $1 towards our $500 fundraising goal for Damariscotta Mills Fish Ladder Restoration this month.
