BRUNSWICK, Maine — A fisherman identified by the Maine Marine Patrol caught too many pogies in his purse seine last week to load onto his boat, and left the overflow floating in Maquoit and Middle bays.
By mid-week, the “choking stench” of the rotting fish left waterfront owners with no choice but to close their windows and stay inside.
The Rev. Frank Strasburger, who lives along the cove around Simpson’s Point, was frustrated long before an airboat pulled up on the mud in front of his house, delivering Brunswick Marine Resources Officer Dan Devereaux and his son, Jesse Devereaux.
On Sunday, Devereaux and his son, along with local shellfishermen and a handful of Jesse’s friends, combed the shoreline between Simpson’s Point and Miller Point, filling trash bags with dead pogies, otherwise known as menhaden.
On Monday, Devereaux and his son again traveled the shoreline in an airboat, retrieving the bags. Strasberger praised them, but said he was disappointed that state government hadn’t offered to help.
But Maine Department of Marine Resources spokesman Jeff Nichols said later Monday that the Maine Marine Patrol had identified and spoken to the fisherman who was responsible for the kill, but he declined to release any identifying information.
“There’s been no violation here,” Nichols said. “There’s also no indication of any public health threat.”
Nichols said Monday that the DMR had no plan to assist in the cleanup.
More:
http://bangordailynews.com/2017/06/19/news/midcoast/man-who-caused-brunswick-stink-by-dumping-dead-fish-in-bay-broke-no-law-says-maine-dmr/What I want to know is how big was the bloody net?! 5 MILES of dead, stinking fish is not a small over-catch.
