People who were concerned about the U.S. Coast Guard’s plan to remove navigational buoys in the Gulf of Maine and Atlantic Ocean can breathe and boat a bit more easily for the moment.
U.S. Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, and a bipartisan group of New England senators urged the Coast Guard to delay its plans to remove the beacons. A press release sent out early Monday states that the Coast Guard confirmed to King that the buoys’ removal will be delayed.
There were 351 buoys in New England that were slated for removal. Of those, 145 were Maine buoys.
“In a letter addressed to the Senators, USCG Director of Marine Transportation Systems, Michael D. Emerson, agreed with the senators and outlined the Coast Guard’s plan to modify and extend the stakeholder engagement process to better understand the impacts of the proposal,” the press release reads.
The removal was part of the Coast Guard’s April 2025 Coastal Buoy Modernization Initiative. The initiative is part of the Short-Range Aids-to-Navigation Modernization effort.
The Coast Guard said that more than 3,000 people commented on the proposed removal. Commenters spoke toward the need for the buoys in bad weather and dark conditions as well as the use of the buoys as places to meet.
The Coast Guard will likely issue a revision of the proposal this fall and have open public comment.
“We urge the agency to slow down this effort to ensure that the agency understands the needs of the communities and mariners in our states. Therefore, we urge you to extend the public comment period and increase public and Congressional engagement as outlined in this letter,” the group of senators had urged via a bipartisan letter.
Another initiative, the Harbor Buoy Modernization Initiative and the Shallow Water Level of Service Study, proposes potentially removing another 2,349 buoys and beacons. If that occurred, it would be a phased removal that would begin in 2026 and end in 2029.
“I appreciate your concern that the Coast Guard slow down the effort to ensure that the needs of communities and mariners in your states are understood. Accordingly, the Coast Guard will modify and extend the process. The Northeast District will review first round comments, assess feedback, and re-advertise with any changes to the current proposal. This notice will include changes to aids in the vicinity of proposed discontinuations (such as relocations, lighting, or increased nominal range); which will provide users a more complete change picture,” Emerson wrote in the letter.
According to the press release sent by Senator King’s office, “King recently secured key provisions in the FY 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) to support the maritime forces and ensure that America’s military can continue providing best in class services to protect the ‘territory of the brave.’ In 2023, he was honored with the Congressional Sea Services Award by the Navy League Capital Council and accepted it on behalf of the men and women of the sea services. Additionally, as an engaged leader on maritime matters, Senator King has previously secured legislation that bolstered USCG and marine transport cybersecurity, healthcare for sentinels, and increase pay and housing allowances for Maine Coasties. He also successfully negotiated provisions enacted into law that supported Maine lobstermen and Maine Windjammers.
“Additionally, as a member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, Senator King has been a longtime advocate for Maine’s outdoor resources. Last year, Senator King helped secure critical funding for the American Lobster Research Program—an organization that supports projects to address critical knowledge gaps about American lobster and its fishery in a dynamic and changing environment. Senator King also helped pass the Thomas R. Carper Water Resources Development Act, legislation that provides approval for the restoration of a Maine fishway to allow fish such as herring, alewives, and the endangered Atlantic salmon to migrate upstream.”
