The most comprehensive online source of conservation news and events in Maine and beyond, edited by Jym St. Pierre
Thank you for reading Maine Environmental News. Each year, we post thousands of news summaries, notices, and links related to important environmental issues from across the state (and beyond). If you find this service useful, you can help us continue to provide it by making a donation. Just click on the button below and contribute whatever you can afford. Thanks again for your generous support!
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Jym St. Pierre
Editor, Maine Environmental News
MAINE PUBLIC • April 14, 2026
A new state law will encourage Maine electric customers to shift their heavy power use to times of the day when there is lower overall demand. The law directs Efficiency Maine to develop a pilot program offering education and outreach to customers who could benefit from switching to cheaper "time of use" rates offered by Maine's electric utilities. Under those rates, customers can lower their monthly bill if they avoid using lots of electricity between 5 p.m. and 9 p.m., when demand is highest. Officials across New England are implementing similar programs to reduce wholesale electric prices and the need to build out expensive infrastructure.
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • April 14, 2026
Lumbra Hardwoods in Milo is closing this month after 74 years in business. The sawmill can’t sustain rising electric and machinery costs, forcing the family business to close, co-owner Stephen Lumbra said. “The company can’t continue like this..” Lumbra Hardwoods is the second Milo business to close within the last two years due to rising utility prices. Costs of incentives for building solar arrays and using solar power have been pushed onto companies that can’t afford their now higher bills, Lumbra said, forcing them to close. Employees will work at the mill until the end of April when the last logs are sold, Lumbra said. The company has 20 employees.
MAINE PUBLIC • April 14, 2026
For the first time since its formation in 1987, state lawmakers have elected to provide continuous funding to the Land for Maine's Future program. "It's really a game changer," said Luke Frankel of the Natural Resources Council of Maine. "It's a big win for the environment, outdoor recreation and Maine's natural resource-based economy." The money will come from a portion of the interest earned on the state's Budget Stabilization Fund — also called the Rainy Day Fund. "It's estimated that this would generate $7 million to $8 million," he said. "So that's a substantial amount of money going towards the program on an annual basis."
MAINE MORNING STAR • April 14, 2026
A sweeping reorganization of the U.S. Forest Service signals that the agency is planning to lean heavily on states to manage millions of acres of federal land. State officials and timber industry leaders say they’ve been given scant details about the plan, which will move the agency’s headquarters from Washington, D.C., to Salt Lake City, restructure its regional management, and close scores of research stations in dozens of states. Many forestry veterans fear the shake-up will cause more attrition in an agency that’s already shrunk by nearly 5,900 employees because of Trump’s cuts. Some see a clear sign that moving the headquarters to Utah — a state whose leaders are often hostile to federal land ownership — is designed to undermine the Forest Service’s management of its lands. The closure of 57 research stations will threaten critical science that states and other forest managers rely on. The agency is required to seek congressional approval to relocate offices, which will trigger legal challenges. [There are 47,000 acres of national forest in Maine.]
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • April 14, 2026
Workshops are being held by the Maine Forest Service to teach the low-tech art of live staking, a nature-based stabilization method using “living rebar” to prevent Maine rivers, lakes, and coastal dunes from washing away in a changing climate. For years, the standard reaction to a crumbling shore was rip rap or a retaining wall. But state regulators now think hard armor can backfire, damaging neighboring lots, causing downstream erosion, and destroying the “living edge” that filters out pollutants before they reach the water. Under the new regulations, most landowners will have to prove nature-based solutions will not work before they are permitted to haul in stone or pour concrete.
QUODDY TIDES • April 13, 2026
In 1991 when the McCurdy Smokehouse in Lubec closed, it was the “last of the last” commercial herring smokehouses in the country. For 100 years, it was a place where herring were smoked, packaged and shipped all over the world. The smoked herring business was one of the most important industries of Down East Maine, and now the intact smokehouse, the last of its kind, preserves a vanished era of working waterfronts of the region. It is also endangered by the rising tide. Lubec Landmarks is fundraising to acquire the property, having already secured a verbal agreement with the owners that they will not sell until Lubec Landmarks completes the congressional funding process. If the project is successful, the smokehouse may get a second act on higher ground and be a boon for tourism.
MAINE PUBLIC • April 13, 2026
Maine is poised to become the first state in the nation to temporarily ban the development of large data centers. But Gov. Janet Mills has said the measure needs to have an exemption for a proposed $550 million project at the former Androscoggin paper mill in Jay to get her support. The developments have increasingly met backlash from communities concerned about their huge appetite for electricity, water and their environmental impact.
MAINE PUBLIC • April 13, 2026
Maine's gross domestic product grew by 0.6% in 2025. That's the 4th lowest in the country. Growth was dragged down by declines in several sectors, including accommodation and food services. At the same time, the analysis finds total personal income grew by about 4.7% , putting the state roughly in the middle of the pack nationally. Maine’s per capita personal income rose to $71,662.
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • April 13, 2026
For decades, Tom Wessels has pioneered and publicized this art of “reading the forested landscape” in New England. An author and retired professor now living in Blue Hill, the ecologist is still teaching others how to find these clues – not just to uncover human history, he said, but to help people see the stories of the interconnected relationships at work in nature.
SUN JOURNAL • April 13, 2026
The resident bobcat and coyotes are not putting a dent in the deer population, and there is no sign of winter kills. At the current rate, the deer will push the limits of social carrying capacity very soon. The best thing I can do for them is plan to hunt them this fall and fill my freezer while keeping the overall population managed. ~ Erin Merrill
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • April 13, 2026
As a business owner in Downeast Maine, my livelihood depends on visitors drawn to Maine’s public lands and outdoor activities. When our parks and public lands are well maintained, local businesses like mine thrive, and Mainers benefit from a growing tourism economy. But when deteriorating infrastructure restricts visitor access, or limits the visitor experience, it impacts not just the parks — but those of us who depend on the parks each year to bring visitors from around the world to enjoy our state. The quality of these experiences directly impacts the number of visitors that come to Maine each year — and if that quality suffers, so too does the impact on the greater economy that depends on these visitors. That’s why the bipartisan Great American Outdoors Act was so important. Keeping our national parks and public lands maintained isn’t just good stewardship. It’s good business for Maine. ~ Brian Langley, Union River Lobster Pot in Ellsworth, and a former state senator
MAINE PUBLIC • April 13, 2026
A stretch of asphalt along Portland's waterfront will be turned into a park. The site, between Maine State Pier and the Ocean Gateway Passenger Ship Terminal, was once used by cars lining up to take the international ferry to Nova Scotia. Since that service ended, the city has used it as a parking lot. By year's end, Portland Parks and Public Works Director Ethan Hipple says it will be very different, "filled with native plants, 40 park trees, great lawn, stage, walking trails, places to sit and enjoy the view and have a cup of coffee." The idea has been around in some form for a decade, but funds were lacking until U.S. Sen. Angus King secured a $2.1 million Congressionally Designated grant.
MAINE PUBLIC • April 13, 2026
Gas utilities operating in Maine reported about 1,100 leaks last year, nearly one for every mile of gas distribution line in the state, according to new disclosures required under state law. State Rep. Sophie Warren, D-Scarborough, who sponsored the law, said gas leaks pose threats to health, safety and the environment. "There's a whole host of issues connected to natural gas infrastructure and leaks that are extremely concerning," Warren said. The impact of fugitive gas emissions on the climate is of particular concern, Warren added. Natural gas pumped into homes is mostly made up of methane, which is a greenhouse gas 80 times more powerful than carbon dioxide over a period of 20 years.
LIVERMORE FALLS ADVERTISER • April 13, 2026
The Maine Legislature is considering LD 2141, which would redirect about $4 million annually from unclaimed bottle deposits toward environmental and related programs, including farmland protection and lake restoration. An estimated $16 million in unclaimed bottle deposits sits in Maine’s redemption system every year. Under current law, the bulk of that money flows back to beverage distributors. Supporters argue unclaimed deposits are effectively a windfall for the industry. Opponents, including some in the redemption business, say any diversion of funds misses the more urgent problem: the handling fee paid to redemption centers has not kept pace with the cost of running one.
SUN JOURNAL • April 13, 2026
A recent op-ed in this paper argued that if Maine is going to produce local energy that will be exported to other states, Maine needs to see the benefits. But if Maine can make clean energy locally and receive jobs and tax revenue in return, isn’t that a win for Maine? Energy production truly does mean business for Maine. There are 16,171 clean energy workers in Maine — 3% of our total workforce. And according to a recent report from the Maine Department of Energy Resources clean energy jobs are outpacing overall job growth in Maine. These jobs are on the rise in almost every Maine county, especially rural ones. That same report found the clean energy industry contributed $3 billion to our economy in 2024 — about 3% of our total GDP. Energy is a product that Maine can make and export. That’s a win for Maine and our entire region. ~ Eliza Donoghue, Maine Renewable Energy Association
MAINE PUBLIC • April 10, 2026
The invasive emerald ash borer is spreading rapidly across Maine, decimating ash trees in its path. But the small, greenish beetle is also threatening the ancient Wabanaki tradition of basketmaking. That threat has some tribal members questioning the best way forward. There’s a story that’s been passed down for generations among the Wabanaki people. It says ash trees are the place from which they were all created.
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • April 10, 2026
Coastal Mountains Land Trust has purchased a 55-acre parcel in Lincolnville, as part of a three-decade-long effort to protect habitat for endangered wild Atlantic Salmon. The parcel is “biologically quite important and quite active,” said Ian Stewart, executive director of the land trust. The land includes 1,580 feet of frontage on Kendall Brook, one of the Ducktrap River’s three main tributaries. The Ducktrap River is one of just eight rivers in the country, all in Maine, with a population of naturally spawning Atlantic salmon.
RANGELEY HIGHLANDER • April 10, 2026
The Farmington-based High Peaks Alliance has launched a six-part op-ed series focused on life, community and public access in Maine’s High Peaks region, beginning with a contribution from Kingfield resident Dan Rhodes. In the first installment, “Lessons of the Land and Access Today and Tomorrow,” Rhodes reflects on his family’s decision to settle in western Maine after years of moving, describing the region’s rivers, forests and mountains as central to their sense of home.
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • April 9, 2026
The last area of Maine experiencing extreme drought conditions was downgraded Thursday, but the entire state remains under severe and moderate drought conditions. Meanwhile, the Maine Forest Service declared most of Maine was under a high wildfire risk on Thursday. Only the state’s northwest corner was considered at low fire risk.
