ISLAND JOURNAL • December 1, 2020
Who owns this intertidal zone depends on the law of the land on which the tide ebbs and flows. In Maine, intertidal land can be privately owned. Even on privately owned intertidal land, you may still have a right to be there, but that right depends solely on which activities you engage in while you are there. Per Maine statute, no one can stop you from casting a fishing line into the water, digging for clams, or shooting a duck (in season) from their private intertidal land, if you can get to it without trespassing. You have the Massachusetts colonial government to thank for this right.