Eastern Maine Conservation Initiative

The new deadline for submissions is March 15, 2025.

Submission guidelines can be found here: https://www.emcimaine.org/?page_id=20

The Gulf of Maine and its coastal regions, including Downeast Washington County, are experiencing rapid ecological changes due to climate change. While the information below is daunting, research and conservation projects like those we support at EMCI are making a difference by helping improve management and adaptation plans. It is critical that work like this continues to get funded in order to protect the unique ecosystems and traditional industries that support the communities in Washington County. Please consider making a donation to help us continue our support of projects that preserve this beautiful and underserved region.

Here’s a consolidated overview of the key issues:

Warming Waters and Sea Level Rise

The Gulf of Maine is warming 97% faster than the global ocean, with water temperatures rising 3 times faster than the global average. This warming trend is accompanied by accelerated sea level rise, which has nearly doubled in the past 30 years. These changes resulted in massive storms in early January 2024 that severely impacted local communities, particularly the fishing community which experienced enormous loss of their working waterfront infrastructure.

Marine Biodiversity & Ecosystem Shifts

The Gulf’s rich biodiversity, home to over 3,300 species of marine plants and animals, is under threat:

• Warming waters are becoming too warm for cod and kelp forests.
• Kelp forests are declining, with some areas witnessing a 36.2% decrease between 1987 and 2015.
• In Downeast Washington County, kelp forests are transitioning to red algae turf reefs, altering habitat structures and potentially impacting fish communities. They now cover 50-60% of the ocean floor in some areas.
• Coastal mudflats in Washington County have seen drastic reductions in species diversity since the 1980s. Shellfish populations, crucial for local economies, are threatened by increasing ocean acidification.
• Other important commercial species like American lobster, Atlantic cod, and sea scallops are affected by changing conditions, which put additional pressure on the livelihood of traditional fishing communities. Cunner (also known as Tautog) and Pollock, fish species of less market value are now becoming dominant.
• The critically endangered North Atlantic right whale, among 30 at-risk species in the Gulf, faces challenges due to seasonal mismatches affecting food availability.

Terrestrial Ecosystem Changes

Climate change is having significant impacts on terrestrial species in Washington County, Maine. Here are some specific effects:

• The treeline and growing season in Washington County’s forests are shifting, with peak fall foliage now occurring almost two weeks later than it did in 1950.
• Climate change, coupled with increased pressure from non-native pathogens, insect pests, and invasive species, is altering the composition of Maine’s forests.
• Cedar and fir trees are sensitive to temperature and precipitation changes in the region. Spruce forests, particularly red spruce, are among the most climate-sensitive ecosystems in Maine. The U.S. Forest Service predicts a 50% decline in red spruce by 2100. Warming temperatures and changing precipitation patterns are also expected to reduce habitat suitability for balsam fir and other spruce species. Even small climatic changes could lead to rapid changes in these forests, as they are at the southern edge of their range. The spruce-fir forest decline could have cascading effects on wildlife, such as the potential loss of 60 bird species in Acadia National Park by 2150

• Beech leaf disease is becoming more visible, with many stands failing to recover after several seasons of canopy loss.
• White pine trees across the state are universally affected by white pine needle disease.
• Eight new wildlife species were added to the Maine State List of Endangered and Threatened Species in 2023, many due to climate change impacts. Newly listed species include the Saltmarsh Sparrow, Bicknell’s Thrush, Blackpoll Warbler, Marginated Tiger Beetle, Cliff and Bank Swallows, the Tricolored Bat, and Ashton’s Cuckoo Bumblebee. (Note: Several of these species live outside the Washington County area).
• Additional species vulnerable to climate change in Washington County include bats, amphibians, turtles, salmonid fish, and moose.
• A quarter of Maine’s at-risk butterflies are threatened by climate change.
• Maine birds are shifting their ranges due to climate change. Two-thirds of short-distance migrants and one-third of long-distance migrants are projected to decrease in the region. The Boreal Chickadee is already moving northward.
• Many of Maine’s insects, foundational to ecosystem food webs, are altering their flight periods due to climate change. These changes are causing mismatches between flowering and pollination, as well as between predators and prey.
• Changes in precipitation and hydrology, especially in ephemeral or vernal pools, are likely impacting Washington County’s amphibians.
• Climate warming is facilitating the establishment and spread of more invasive plant species in Washington County. The county’s biodiverse river shores and floodplains are particularly vulnerable to invasive plant proliferation. Invasive species like Common and Glossy Buckthorn are flourishing in warmer winters and replacing native understory plants.

Your support of projects that help understand and mitigate these impacts has enduring impacts! Thank you.

We’re currently accepting grant applications for 2025. The deadline is Feb. 28, 2025. Please refer to our application guidelines.

Please note: EMCI supports projects in the Downeast Maine region, specifically east of Frenchman’s Bay, and prioritizing projects that focus on coastal Washington County.

EMCI granted over $30,000 in 2024 to support a wide variety of projects conducted in Washington County, Maine, including:

1. An inventory of the status and distribution of seaweeds on offshore islands.
2. Support of a local historical society to create a replica 19th century room.
3. A clam recruitment monitoring network in Eastern Maine.
4. A moss inventory on island environments.
5. Establishment of distributional baselines for island land birds in regions of potential climate change refugia.
6. Funding of graduate student summer internship to assist in restoring riverine processes and habitat suitability for Atlantic salmon.  
7. Ongoing mycorrhizal study on island environment.
8. Support for University of Maine at Machias Summer Conservation Internship focusing on coastal observation skill development.
9. Radiocarbon Dating Eroded Archaeological Sites on Falls Island, Pembroke, Maine.
10. Environmental monitoring and conservation of priority coastal Spruce forests in Downeast Maine.
11. Support of local high school program to create a vernal pool and study local ecosystems through inventory of native plants and pollinator conservation.
12. Improving the accuracy of multispectral drone analysis of harvested rockweed beds.
13. Assisting a local museum in the printing of a map and guide that covers local historical sites and cultural information.
14. Support of emergency requisition of industrial saltwater pump system to enable ongoing scallop spat study.
15. Establishment of baseline vegetation data on remote island environment.

In 2023, we granted over $23,000 to support ecological research, conservation, and preservation efforts in the Downeast Washington County region of Maine.

1. Support of a local historical society in its efforts to preserve historical documents and conduct oral history interviews with elderly community members.
2. Funding an ecologically focused professional development workshop for teachers in eastern Washington County. 
3. Erosion audit of archaeological sites on Falls Island, Pembroke, Maine.
4. Support for expansion of coastal observing capacities for fisheries in eastern Washington County. 
5. Development of a new tool for assessing the impacts of rockweed harvesting with multispectral drone analysis.
6. Funding of graduate student summer internship to assist in restoring riverine processes and habitat suitability for Atlantic salmon.  
7. Continued support for the restoration of American Civil War Museum room.
8. Development of a project to engage local community members in assessing seaweed health in Downeast Maine. 

We are grateful to have been able to fund so many excellent projects this year! In 2022 we granted over $20,000 to support research, conservation, and preservation efforts initiated by local organizations in the Downeast Region of Maine. The projects include: 

1. A project to educated local landowners and their communities about rockweed harvesting, including how to recognize it, and their options for legal response. (Center for Ecological Training)
2. Support of acquisition of a drone to help in monitoring remote easements. (Downeast Coastal Conservancy)
3. A project, in cooperation with NERACOOS, to monitor the water quality in the Saint Croix River. (Maine Center for Coastal Fisheries)
4. A survey of owls in Downeast, Maine both to understand migration and habitat ranges.  (Maine Natural History Observatory)
5. Support of an intern to help with the digitization of historical records. (Sullivan Sorrento Historical Society)
6. The hiring of an independent archeologist to review a historical tide mill. (Tide Mill Institute)
7. Financing support for final phase of a significant restoration project of Civil War murals. (Tides Institute)
8. Water quality monitoring in the Chandler Bay Area.
9. Development of a CEM ROMS tidal current model for areas of coastal Washington Country from Machias Bay to Moosabec Reach.

We are grateful to have received so many excellent grant applications this year! The following projects have been funded in our 2021 grant cycle.

1. A project to gather and assess the concentrations of floating microplastics and understand their associated risks to seabird colonies in Eastern Maine. (Shaw Institute)
2. An experiential learning program for high school students focusing on water quality monitoring. (Cobscook Institute)
3. The production of a digital resource for identifying and classifying the seaweeds of eastern Maine. (Glen Mittlehauser, Maine Natural History Observatory)
4. A survey of steams–focusing on water quality and density of aquatic organisms–to be completed by the Passamaquoddy Wildlife Department and be used as input in the management plan for a 55,000 acre protected forest.  (Downeast Lakes Land Trust)
5. Production of a short documentary film to help communicate the model of a successful community-based marine research facility that has achieved national recognition while addressing the local economic and environmental conditions. (Downeast Institute)
6. Development and dissemination of an “Environmental Stewardship Guide” for Taunton Bay Watershed which can be used as a model for other communities. (Friends of Taunton Bay)
7. Hardware upgrade and software support for small local historical society in the process of digitizing their archives. (Jonesport Historical Society)
8. An immersive study by local high school students to gauge the “true impact and value of lobsters” to their local community. (Jonesport High School)
9. Interviews and meetings with a cross-section of stakeholders in Washington Country, ME to understand the social complexities of the local fishing communities, their economic dependencies, and their deep knowledge of their local marine ecologies. (Maine Center for Coastal Fisheries)
10. Supplies and storage solutions to support the archiving of historical documents in a small community that had previously not had any historical society. (Roque Bluffs Historical Society)

EMCI awarded approximately $21,000 in grants in 2019, all going to great projects that directly support the Eastern Maine region.

We wish the best of luck to all applicants, and look forward to seeing the progress reports of our grant recipients as they come in.

2019 Awards

Washington Academy, Atlantic Salmon Conservation School Network. A school program in Washington county that will allow local children to participate in a cross-cultural program – with children from other ‘northern’ nations – focusing on the sustainability and conservation of Atlantic Salmon in Eastern Maine.

Downeast Salmon Federation. A project with the goal of determining a holistic approach to ecosystem-based Atlantic Salmon habitat restoration in the Machias River. The results of this project will be disseminated to key state agencies to help in developing management processes.

University of Maine Machias. William Otto. Seventh Annual Roque Island Lecture.

Jonathan Keller. A novelist in Addison, Maine who writes about local fishermen, their lives on the coast of Eastern Maine, and the challenges they face. This novelist engages closely with the local community, elevating their sense of self-worth through his literature. 

Project Share, Eastport. Restoration of riverine processes and habitat suitability in the Upper Narraguagus River and Northern Stream.

Maine Natural History Observatory. The final layout and preparation of a multi-volume Field Guide to Maine Wildflowers that will be published in 2019. 

Tides Institute. Support of a local historical society to restore a rare book that includes first-hand accounts of Eastern Maine’s soldiers’ involvement in the Civil War. 

Schoodic Institute. A research project assessing the effects of rockweed on the physical characteristics in the rocky intertidal zone. Rockweed is the most common seaweed in Eastern Maine, providing a vital habitat for marine animals. 

Sullivan-Sorrento Historical Society. Support of local historical society to hire a local student intern to reorganize their collection and develop displays for school children to become familiar with their historical heritage. 

EMCI awarded approximately $26,000 in grants in 2018, all going to great projects that support the Eastern Maine region.

We wish the best of luck to all applicants, and look forward to posting the progress reports of our grant recipients as they come in.

2018 Awards

Maine Coast Heritage Trust. Jane Warren. Petroglyph Interpretive Panels for Long Point, Machias Bay. ($3,000)

Hancock County Soil and Water Conservation District. Zack Steele. Marine Sediment Monitoring. ($2,400)

University of Maine Machias. William Otto. Sixth Annual Roque Island Lecture. ($2,000)

Downeast Salmon Federation. Reducing Aquatic Acidification. ($3,033.50)

Project Share, Eastport. Steven Koenig. Habitat Restoration in Downeast River ($3,000)

Maine Natural History Observatory. Glenn Mittelhauser. Expand wildflower guide to include Hancock Country. ($5,000)

Washington Country Historical and Genealogical Society. ($1,725)

Marine and Environmental Research Institute. Johanna Barrett. Ecosystem Impacts on Keystone Species: Coastal Mussels Bed Loss. ($3,000)

Maine Center for Coastal Fisheries. Paul Anderson. Costs for new graduate intern and funding round table effort of 2017 successful interviews of local fishermen. ($3,000)

Tyrone Preston. Roque Bluffs. Offshore bird monitoring. ($600)

George Stevens Academy. Sara Bushman. Wild Bee Populations in Maine Islands. ($2,468)

Dr. Harold Borns. A model for coastal erosion monitoring. ($1,510)