“Fishes and Loaves: Keeping Fish Alive and Well in Maine,” a presentation and a panel discussion followed by a Gulf of Maine meal, will be held at Popham Chapel, Phippsburg, on Sunday, Aug. 31, at 5 p.m.

Organized by the Phippsburg Congregational Church, UCC, and the Maine Council of Churches in association with Popham Chapel, the event will address the changing realities of ocean ecology and their impact on the fishing culture in Maine.  

Expected to participate are Congresswoman Chellie Pingree and her staff; fishermen Brett Gilliam and Peter Doran; environmental organizer Anne D. Burt; seafood entrepreneur Peter Arnold; and shellfish expert Rep. Mick Devin.

Devin, a shellfish researcher at the University of Maine’s Darling Center and a Maine state legislator, introduced successful legislation this spring that will create a state ocean acidification task force to assemble current research on the issue and develop policies and projects to mitigate the problem.

Pingree has introduced federal legislation modeled on Maine’s successful legislation.

The idea for the event grew out of the Phippsburg Congregational Church’s Social Justice Committee which has sponsored a community-supported fishery connection with the Salt and Sea fishing cooperative of Portland as part of the church’s commitment to the Maine Council of Church’s (MCC) Fishes and Loaves mission.  

The MCC initiative is designed to inform local congregations and communities of the evolving challenges of ocean ecology, how our lifestyle on land impacts the sea, the creatures who live in it, and our neighbors who make their living from it. As part of the event, Burt, the leader of the MCC initiative, will show a locally created short video called “Fishing Voices” about the local fishing culture. Additionally, Arnold will talk about the seaweed aquaculture business that he and an oyster grower are developing by the Damariscotta River.

The presentation and discussion will be followed by a Gulf of Maine meal that will feature dishes of fresh seafood. The community-sponsored fishery in Port Clyde will supply the fish and local fishermen will supply the shellfish.

There is no charge for the presentation or the meal but donations are welcome to help defray the cost and to support the Maine Council of Churches in their educational and ecumenical mission concerning this subject.

The presentation will begin at 5 p.m. in Popham Chapel, followed by the meal in the neighboring Chapel House. All are invited to attend. Popham Chapel is located on Popham Road in Phippsburg. For more information, please call 207-389-1767 or visit www.phippsburgucc.org.