Photo / Courtesy Department of Marine Resources
Carl Wilson
3 hours ago
Mills' pick to lead Marine Resources comes from within department
A week after the Maine Department of Marine Resources commissioner said he would retire, Gov. Janet Mills nominated a candidate for the post from within the agency.
Carl Wilson has been a fisheries scientist and lead lobster biologist at the department for the last 26 years.
Wilson's nomination will be subject to a hearing before the Legislature's Marine Resources Committee and confirmation by the Maine State Senate.
Until then, Mills said Wednesday, she would appoint Wilson to serve as acting commissioner until a permanent commissioner is confirmed by the Maine Senate.
Wilson would succeed Patrick Keliher, the agency’s longest-serving commissioner with 14 years on the job.
Keliher announced last week that he will retire on March 14.
Wilson joined the DMR in 1999 as lead lobster biologist. Since 2015, he has served as director of the agency’s Bureau of Marine Science, which oversees DMR's overall fisheries research and monitoring efforts and has a staff of 90.
Wilson said collaboration is key to the position.
“There are many challenges ahead and I will remain committed to the collaboration necessary to confront them,” he said.
Keliher said Wilson has helped the science bureau adapt its programs to respond to changing climate, incorporate industry's desire for participation in the science and address the need for better data to help manage and protect the marine environment.
Beals Island fisherman Dwight Carver said he’s worked with Wilson since the 1990s, when Wilson was a fisheries observer on Carver’s boat.
“I've always had high regard for the information he shared with me,” Carver said.
Patrice McCarron, executive director of the Maine Lobstermen's Association, called Wilson “a rare leader in government who truly respects fishermen as professionals and values their deep expertise.
“His open-minded approach and willingness to listen will make him a valuable partner in shaping the future of our industry,” McCarron said.
As lead lobster biologist from 1999 to 2015, Wilson directed all lobster research and monitoring programs, initiated several new collaborative monitoring programs and research projects, supervised science staff, chaired the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Council lobster technical committee, and oversaw the operation and maintenance of department research vessels and mapping systems.
As director of the bureau of marine science, he was instrumental in establishing the DMR's Division of Marine Mammal Research, according to a news release. The division monitors North Atlantic right whales to provide federal regulators have data to develop targeted regulations that minimize their impact on fishermen.
The bureau reorganized in 2021 and 2022 to create two additional divisions, for biological monitoring and assessment and for ecology and the environment. The divisions have improved the department's ability to collect data on commercially and recreationally important species and to better understand the Gulf of Maine ecosystem.
Wilson led the renovation of the Maine State Aquarium and modernization of the departments' flow-through sea water laboratory to ensure the safe care and handling of animals held for display in the aquarium and for research by DMR staff.
Wilson has also served as a co-chair of the Maine Climate Council's Coastal and Marine Working Group, which is tasked with recommending short- and long-term strategies and actions for adaptation and resiliency to climate change in Maine's coastal communities and marine industries.
"His vast knowledge and experience in the science, policy and economics of Maine's marine resource industries, combined with the strong relationships and mutual respect he has developed with Mainers who make a living on the water over his 26 years at DMR, will serve him well as the department's next leader,” said Mills.
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