From the Maine Department of Marine Resources (DMR): Beginning on November 1, 2026, Maine seaweed harvesters obtaining DMR seaweed licenses will be asked if they intend to harvest rockweed (Ascophyllum nodosum) in the 2027 harvest season.
If harvesters intend to harvest rockweed
Harvesters who intend to harvest rockweed will be required to take a rockweed education course (Title 12, §6803: Seaweed permit, Subsection 6) to obtain their seaweed licenses. Once they have completed the course, they will receive a rockweed endorsement. The rockweed education course is an open-book, 12 questions exam, that is multiple choice and has multiple attempts. An information page created to accompany the exam with exam answers is available at Maine Rockweed Harvester Exam Information | Department of Marine Resources. This is a one-time exam, unless the course is updated. If updated, DMR will notify all harvesters in advance.
If harvesters do not intend to harvest rockweed
Harvesters who do not intend to harvest rockweed will not be prompted to complete the rockweed education course to receive their seaweed licenses.
Please reach out to Jen Harris, Resource Management Coordinator, via email at Jennifer.harris@maine.gov, or via phone at (207) 458-9234, if you have any questions. You can also reach out to DMR Licensing at licensing.dmr@maine.gov, or via phone at (207) 624-6550.
Maine Rockweed Harvester Exam Information
The course is a multiple choice, open-book, exam provided to harvesters through the LEEDS licensing system. It can be taken multiple times and requires an 80% or higher score to pass. Answers to the exam are in the information below. The exam can be taken online in the LEEDS licensing system, or in person at the DMR licensing office in Augusta. If you would like a copy of the exam emailed or mailed to you to obtain your seaweed license, please contact DMR licensing at licensing.dmr@maine.gov (207-624-6550). Once a rockweed harvester has successfully passed this exam, they will not be required to take it again to obtain their seaweed license for subsequent harvest seasons. Please note, if this exam is updated in the future the DMR will notify harvesters if they need to take the exam again to obtain their seaweed licenses.
Information covered in the exam can be found here:
https://www.maine.gov/dmr/fisheries/commercial/fisheries-by-species/rockweed/exam
For example, this information includes advice about harvesting on private and public property:
“On March 28, 2019, the Maine Supreme Judicial Court issued a decision in Ross v. Acadian Seaplants, LTD (2019 ME 45) stating… “that rockweed in the intertidal zone belongs to the upland property owner and therefore is not public property, is not held in trust by the State for public use and cannot be harvested by members of the public as a matter of right.” Based on this decision, rockweed located in the intertidal zone is the property of the intertidal landowner, which may be the adjacent upland landowner. Harvesters may be in violation of the law and subject to possible criminal or civil legal action if they do not have intertidal landowner permission to remove intertidal rockweed. If a dispute occurs over the harvest of intertidal rockweed, harvesters should stay calm, record details and contact DMR Marine Patrol for guidance before continuing to harvest at that location.”
“Intertidal areas in state parks, and federally owned lands are closed to commercial harvesting.”
