Whole Oceans is hoping to open the in-land salmon farm next year.
The old paper stack came down just before 8am, according to Bangor Daily News, where police shut the roads around the site.
It’s the latest development in preparation for the construction of an Atlantic salmon farm in Bucksport.
An agreement reached on the lease with Maine Bureau of Parks and Land gives Whole Oceans the right to use plumbing that extends into the river from the now-demolished site. Whole Oceans has purchased around 100 acres of land which extends into the river.
Its lease allows them to use a land-based recirculating aquaculture system which will flush the fish out to sea via the river.
Jim Britt, a spokesman for the Bureau of Parks and Lands, told the Bangor Daily News that the lease includes a 4,488-square-foot area along the shore and an 8-by-230-foot area for an outfall pipe.
Some parts will be shared, he added, with Bucksport Mill LLC, covering an area of 8 feet by 120 feet.
It’s hoping to open the site next year, delaying a previous planned opening date of November.
It now awaits a final permit to build the last remaining bits of construction, which it is expecting to receive next month.
When opened, it’s expected to produce around 50,000 tons of Atlantic salmon each year, using land-based technology.
Whole Oceans originally received permission to build the site in September. The first phase of the development could create up to 75 jobs.
Nordic Aquafarms, a competitor, is also building a farm in Maine. But that will only have capacity to produce 32,000 metric tons of salmon, and is expected to be built in phases over the next six to seven years. The first fish is expected to be produced there next year.
