Applying for our oyster license in Maine

Where to get an application to start an oyster farm in Maine

It took us about 6 months to get all of this information together by working on it a little bit at a time and then another few months to get it approved. It is definitely not something you can fill out in one sitting. In my opinion, make sure you start the process of filling out your application a year before you hope to get your oysters in the water.

We downloaded our application on the State of Maine Department of Marine Resources website:
http://www.maine.gov/dmr/aquaculture/aquaculture_lease_applications.htm

We downloaded the LPA License Application. The LPA License stands for Limited Purpose Aquaculture and it's for up to 400 square feet of area. In 2015 it was $50 to apply.

Submitting our application for an oyster license

We downloaded our application on the State of Maine's Aquaculture website: 
http://www.maine.gov/dmr/aquaculture/aquaculture_lease_applications.htm

We downloaded the LPA application as well as the Riparian PDF since our site is within 300 feet of property owners on the coast.

The application generally consists of:

Your name and contact Info

The cooridnates of your site

What you'll be farming

Environmental information (eagle's nests nearby, eelgrass)

Depth at high tide and low tide:

You can find this info here: http://www.charts.noaa.gov/OnLineViewer/13290.shtml

Vicinity map

Description and specs of your gear

Signatures

• Harbormaster or town official
• Riparian signature:
  Since our site was within 300 ft of a landowner, we needed to go to the town hall to get a certified town map as well as a certified riparian list and a certified mail receipt.
• Your signature