Stephen Barnes, Committee Chairman
Bruce Anderson, Committee Member
Timothy Collamore, Committee Member
Rand Maker, Committee Member
Lisa Prior, Committee Member
Aaron Beck, Ex Officio Member
Penelope Card, Committee Secretary
TOWN OF BREMEN
PO Box 171 ~ Bremen, ME 04551
BREMEN SHELLFISH COMMITTEE
MEETING MINUTES
May 27, 2014 at 10:00am ~ Bremen Town Office
MINUTES
1)
ATTENDEES:
Bremen Shellfish Committee members: Chairman Stephen Barnes, Bruce Anderson,
Timothy Collamore and Rand Maker. Clam Warden Aaron Beck and Secretary Penelope
Card
Members of the Public: Stuart Nash, Jason Nash, Kevin Griffin, Maryanne Griffin
2)
CALL TO ORDER – meeting was called to order by Chairman Barnes at 10:00 a.m.
3)
AGENDA:
a.
Election of Officers
On a motion made and duly seconded Stephen Barnes was elected Chairman, Aaron Beck
was elected Sergeant at Arms and Penelope Card was elected Secretary.
b.
2014 Licenses
An advertisement was placed in the Lincoln County News to run on 5/21 and 5/28
detailing the number of licenses to be sold in each category and listing 2 Resident
Commercial (not grandfathered) and 1 Non-Resident (not grandfathered) Commercial
licenses that will be available on a first come, first served basis for those who have
completed 2014 Conservation work. Not Grandfathered means that these licenses do
not receive priority with regard to next year. After some discussion it was decided to
keep the Ad as is and not change it.
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Based on several Committee member’s statements that Rachel Golaski was no longer
domiciled in Bremen and Warden Beck’s assertion that he had verified, with the Knox
County Sheriff’s department that Rachel Golaski was domiciled in Friendship, it was
decided that notice be given to her that she no longer complied with domicile
requirements for a Resident Commercial License under the Clam Conservation
Ordinance.
On a motion made and duly seconded it was voted that Stephen Barnes write a letter to
Rachel Golaski stating that she is ineligible for a 2014 Bremen Residential Commercial
Clam license.
Because Jennifer Rosa is currently homeless but intends to regain a domicile in Bremen,
it was decided to take no action with regard to Jennifer Rosa’s license. In the event she
purchases a license, the Warden will investigate whether or not she is domiciled in the
Town of Bremen as required by the Bremen Shellfish Ordinance.
On a motion made and duly seconded it was voted to mail a letter to the diggers notifying
them of the upcoming survey regarding the Ordinance and also to add the following to be
affixed to the Bremen Shellfish license application:
“I affirm that I have read the Clam Conservation Ordinance of the Town of Bremen
and agree to abide by its provisions and guidelines established by the Ordinance
while engaged in shellfish harvesting in Bremen. I affirm that I am domiciled in
Bremen and will provide proofs of residency if required by the Town Clerk.”
Upon application, each shellfish harvester will be requested to fill out a survey
respecting her/his desire to either keep the ordinance active through a viable
conservation program or repeal the ordinance. This survey constitutes part of the
conservation requirements for 2015.
c.
APPROPRIATE HARVESTING METHODS FOR 2014/2015 as per § VII.[F]
On a motion made and duly seconded it was voted that night digging and picking will
not be allowed between March 21st and September 21st but will be allowed between
September 21st and March 21st .
On a motion made and duly seconded it was voted that digging in company with someone
not holding a Town license will be grounds for a warning and if a harvester engages in
repeated offenses grounds for suspension of the harvester’s license.
A memorandum will be sent to all the diggers along with their priority letter stating the
Appropriate Harvesting Methods voted above.
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d.
Report on Conversations with Dennis-Marc Kault and Rene Cloutier
Dennis Marc-Kault manages Maine’s municipal shellfish program. He stated that the
DMR has hired an additional biologist and that the area biologists will, once again, be
working in the field to assure that clam conservation programs are, in fact, established.
He suggested that conservation efforts are often more effective if staggered throughout
the year to match the natural life cycles associated with clam biology. He offered to
provide informational meetings about clam biology and conservation methods that
have proved effective in other Towns.
Rene Cloutier indicated that the DMR’s enforcement division is willing to work with
Warden Beck whenever he wants assistance.
e.
Enforcement discussion– Clam Warden Beck will introduce himself to the diggers and
to shorefront property owners. He will provide his business cards when he makes
these introductions. Warden Beck was asked to keep a record of the number of diggers
he encounters during each patrol and to estimate the volume of their harvest. This
information is useful when filling out the Town’s annual report.
f.
Other Business – Steve will check with the State to see if an applicant needs to produce
his State license to the Town Clerk at time of Application. It was questioned that if a State
License is suspended then is it against the Bremen Ordinance that they hold a Bremen
license? Steve will check on the license requirements and guidelines with the DMR.
4.
ADJOURNMENT
Meeting was adjourned by unanimous decision at 11:50 am.
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BREMEN Shellfish Committee:
Stephen Barnes, Chairman
Bruce Anderson
Timothy Collamore, Sr.
Rand Maker
Lisa Prior
Aaron Beck
Respectfully submitted, Penelope N. Card, Secretary
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