Donate

To make a donation towards the legal fees incurred by the landowner defendants in a case brought by the Maine rockweed industry.

SUPPORT THE MAINE COAST PROTECTION FUND! 

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Need a tax deduction?

DONATE via the defendants’ 501c3 fiscal sponsor, Center for Ecological Teaching and Learning (CETL) on Cobscook Bay. (5% fee charged to defendants.)

1. DONATE ONLINE, via CETL’s paypal account;

OR

2. DONATE via CHECK made out to  “Center for Ecological Teaching and Learning”. Please write MCPF in the memo line. Mail to: Martha Harney, CETL board member, 42 Central St, Auburndale MA 02466.

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Don’t need a tax donation?

1. DONATE ONLINE (GoFundMe site). Please note you can set the optional tip to 0%.  (There is also a mandatory transaction fee charged by GoFundMe per donation.)

or

2. DONATE by CHECK made out to “Robin Hadlock Seeley”, with MCPF in the memo line. Mail to: Robin at PO Box R, Pembroke ME 04666.

Dr. Seeley maintains a bank account at Bangor Savings Bank exclusively for this fund, from which she draws payments for attorney invoices for representing the 7 defendants.

STATUS OF THE ROCKWEED LEGAL CASE – updated 4 Nov 2024

The Maine Coast Protection Fund pays the legal fees of the 7 landowner/advocate defendants that were sued in 2021 by members of the rockweed industry.

Oct. 10, 2024: Oral arguments at Maine Supreme Court. Link to video of oral arguments. 

June through September 2024: APPEAL TO MAINE SUPREME COURT: All legal documents, motions, briefs, etc. can be found here.

April 2022: The landowners/advocates won in Maine Superior Court.

April 2021: Seven landowners were sued by rockweed industry members for exercising their first amendment right to contact Marine Patrol when their rockweed was harvested without their permission, OR for instructing other landowners about their rights to protect rockweed from harvest under the 2019 Maine Supreme Court Ross decision.

Why the Maine Rockweed Coalition supports the defendants’ fundraising for their defense:

1. Because the defendants have acted to protect and conserve the rockweed on their shores in accordance with the 2019 Maine Supreme Court decision.

2. Because ultimately we believe that private ownership offers a better chance at rockweed conservation than does ownership by the state.

   See an article by the Pacific Legal Foundation on this topic: “In win for property rights and the environment, Maine Supreme Judicial Court sides with coastal property owners” and their amicus brief in the court case.