NEW YORK TIMES • September 7, 2024
Stonington’s storied way of life has come to feel more tenuous, its existence more fragile, as pressure builds from climate change and economic forces. In small towns and fishing ports up and down Maine’s coast, fishermen have faced a slew of challenges in recent years: Tighter federal rules to protect endangered whales have limited the days they can fish and the gear they can use, while an influx of newcomers has driven up the price of coastal real estate and the pressure on tiny, cash-strapped towns to preserve their working waterfronts. “We’ve got a wall of water coming at us, and a wall of money coming at us, and we’re fighting these two big forces,” said Linda Nelson, Stonington’s economic and community development director.