Casco Bay Concert to Benefit Maine Lobstermen

Third annual event off Chebeague Island will support Maine Lobstermen’s Association #SaveMaineLobstermen campaign

KENNEBUNK – Local lobstermen, fishing families, and supporters will join forces off the shores of Chebeague Island this weekend for the third annual “Concert on Casco Bay.” The event, to be held Sunday, July 3rd from 12:30-4:00 PM, will feature the music of the Chebeague Island-based band, Turd Pollack, a blues-based jam band comprised of fishermen. Jamie Juenemann, of the Old Dusty’s, will also perform.

The free concert will be held near the Chebeague Island Boat Yard, and the public is invited to anchor near the southeast side of the island. Donations will be accepted to benefit the Maine Lobstermen’s Association’s #SaveMaineLobstermen campaign to protect the future of the state’s iconic lobster industry.

“We are looking forward to welcoming summer with a super fun afternoon of music on Casco Bay,” said John Jordan, local lobsterman, lead singer of the band, Turd Pollack, and event organizer. “We really want to celebrate the Maine lobster industry and all of the value it brings to Maine families and to our state’s tourism economy. Everyone is welcome and we’d love to see a big, floating crowd getting down and soaking in the summer day.”

“We are facing the very real possibility that new federal regulations could put Maine’s lobster fishery out of business,” said Kevin Kelley, Director of Advancement of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association. “This would devastate our state and local communities, but more than that – it would end a heritage that has sustained Maine families for generations. We can’t let that happen and that is why we are so appreciative of fundraising efforts like this. Every dollar donated from this concert will support the Maine Lobstermen’s Association #SaveMaineLobstermen campaign which is leading the fight to protect our way of life.”

Details:

WHAT:  Concert on Casco Bay to Benefit #SaveMaineLobstermen fund

WHEN:  Sunday, July 3rd

12:30-4:00 PM

WHERE: Casco Bay, on a float near Chebeague Island Boat Yard. Public can anchor on southeast side of Chebeague Island.

Donations will be accepted via VENMO (@savemainelobstermen) or can be donated online at www.savemainelobstermen.org.

Background:

The federal government has laid out a plan that aims to protect the endangered North Atlantic right whale by reducing the lobster industry’s already minimal risk posed to the whale by 98-percent by the year 2030. If the industry does not comply with this unachievable goal, the government will not license the industry. The Maine Lobstermen’s Association (MLA) filed a lawsuit in September 2021 to try and force the government to go back to the drawing board and develop a new plan that would protect the whale without eliminating Maine’s lobster industry. MLA argues right whales are rarely seen in waters where Maine lobstermen fish. In fact, there has not been a single known right whale entanglement in Maine lobster gear in nearly 20 years and Maine lobster gear has never been linked to a right whale death. The federal government’s plan ignores important research about right whale migration patterns that reveals the right whales’ food source is moving further away from where Maine lobstermen fish.  In November 2021, MLA launched a 3-year, $10 million fundraising campaign intended to help protect Maine’s lobstering heritage.

More information can be found at www.savemainelobstermen.org.