Such a transformation would have significantly reduced the important clam harvest in this area and had a deleterious effect on associated livelihoods.
[2] In response to this growing environmental concern, residents and neighbors of Dingley Island began in 1996 to investigate the possibility of replacing a portion of the causeway with a bridge that would allow the restoration of normal tidal flows to the cove.
Over the next several years, various partners were brought on board, including the Town of Harpswell, the US Navy Innovative Readiness Training Program (IRT), Bowdoin College students and faculty, the New Meadows River Watershed Project, the Maine Corporate Wetlands Restoration Partnership and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
These partners, led by Harpswell Resident Elsa Martz, worked together to develop and finance the bridge construction project, which cost approximately $174,000.
On October 1, 2003, the community and its partners, along with Governor John Baldacci, celebrated the opening of the new bridge.