Beacon — Opinion: We can’t let rich landowners kill public beach access

Higgins Beach in Scarborough, Maine. | Joe Shlabotnik, Creative Commons via Flickr

Dec 5, 2022

By Isabella Caprio — Sophie Piette, a student at University of New England and intern with intern at Archipelago Law, contributed research to this piece.

Private landowners are ending Maine’s tradition of public access to its beaches. Shorefront owners have harassed and called the police on people trying to make a living, conducting vital research, or simply taking a walk, even badgering children playing in the sand. If this hasn’t been you yet, it soon could be.

Maine residents are currently losing beach access due to a misguided Maine Supreme Judicial Court ruling made in 1989. That ruling claimed that beachfront property owners have title to the intertidal zone between the high- and low-tide water marks. The only way local Mainers will freely walk the coast again is by joining the fight to reclaim state control over intertidal land to be held in trust for the public.

I grew up with unfettered access to Cape Cod’s beaches, sparking my love for the ocean and kindling a sense of responsibility for protecting its natural beauty. Having spent much of my early life on commercial docks and on fishing vessels, I learned that respect for the ocean sets in quickly when you depend on it for your livelihood.

Some of Maine’s local fishermen and business owners rely on the intertidal zone for the harvesting of kelp, seaweed, clams, oysters, and worms. Their success and Maine’s economic success will be curtailed if landowners only allow restricted access to the intertidal zone and the resources it holds.

The current case affects the intertidal zone up and down the coast of Maine. The plaintiffs in the case range from local homeowners to marine biologists and seaweed harvesters across Maine. The defendants are mostly upland property owners with plots along the coast. Some defendants have been closing off the beach to the public for years by posting “No Trespassing” signs and placing physical barriers in the sand to block off the beach. While other defendants have been blocking off access for critical economic activities such as seaweed harvesting.

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