Tag Archives: Acadian Seaplants
Lucrative seaweed pits Canadian company against Maine homeowners in court battle
Cheryl Sawtelle grabs her binoculars – one of three pairs scattered on her living room couch – and peers at the water below her house on Cobscook Bay. “Look, they’re out there again,” she says. “We’ve lost. I’m telling you, it’s too late.” The objects of her distress are two wide skiffs, practically motionless on the buttery surface. In the boats, Kenny Sulkowski and Eric Newell are sweating as they tug at 10-foot rakes to cut and pull heavy seaweed aboard. They clamber atop a growing mound of the rubbery green weed as they work. To Sawtelle, the presence of the men is a dire sign that landowners along the nation’s most northeastern coastline are losing their battle over who owns the seaweed. It’s a peculiarly Maine battle. >click to read<15:05
