In a post on Facebook, Republican gubernatorial candidate Paul LePage has declared that he will block American Aquafarms from building a salmon farm in Frenchman Bay.
Announcing his position in the post titled “protecting Frenchman Bay is critical for our lobsermen,” LePage cited how “men and women who rely on Frenchman Bay for their livelihood strong disagreed” with the proposed development.
“As Maine’s next Governor I will oppose any future application from American Aquafarms in that location. The working ecosystem in Frenchman Bay is much too critical to place at risk for this proposed venture. Good public policy dictates that economic development and the health of Maine’s air, land, and water must go hand in hand,” LePage said.
LePage served as the 74th Governor of Maine from 2011-2019. He stepped down as governor due to term limits that blocked him from serving a third consecutive term. Having faced no opposition in the primary election, he will face Governor Janet Mills in November. Recent polling has showed Mills with a 51-46 percent lead over LePage.
Read more: American Aquafarms withdraws legal action over rejected salmon farm application
American Aquafarms recently withdraw its planned legal action over a decision from the Maine Department of Marine Resources (DMR) to reject applications for the company’s planned salmon farm in Frenchman Bay.
The US aquaculture filed the appeal in the Cumberland County Superior Court, asking the court to vacate the state’s decision and allow the original applications to be considered.
The legal challenge came after Maine’s DMR terminated the application for the $300 million American Aquafarms project back in April, telling SalmonBusiness that the company “failed to provide documentation demonstrating that the proposed source of fish/eggs could meet genetic requirements in law.”
