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Jym St. Pierre
Editor, Maine Environmental News

Letter: Maine voters should prioritize the environment

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 20, 2026

Maine has made great progress eliminating pollution and protecting the environment. The Maine Climate Council reports that our forests, farmland, grasslands and wetlands offset 91% of Maine’s carbon emissions. However, much remains to be done. Voters need to focus on candidates’ positions on the environment. The Trump administration’s support of fossil fuels, defunding of renewable energy and gutting agencies that conduct research and collect data needed to address the climate change we see all around us must be resisted. Only we the voters can do it. Ed Muskie must be rolling over in his grave. ~ David Griswold, Auburn

Janet Mills calls Acadia’s $100 non-US resident entrance fee ‘ridiculous’

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 20, 2026

Gov. Janet Mills said on Wednesday that the Trump administration’s policy of charging higher entrance fees for non-U.S. residents visiting national parks — like Acadia — is “ridiculous” and “foolish.” “It’s not going to raise any money because they just won’t come,” Mills said.The statement comes after President Donald Trump implemented a $100 fee for all non-U.S. residents who visit 11 of the country’s most popular national parks, including Acadia National Park. A standard park pass for visitors with U.S. residency is between $20 and $35. The new fee — required for all non-U.S. residents who are 16 and over — started on Jan. 1.

Column: Why Maine game warden pilots are a special breed

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 20, 2026

Sooner or later, most career game wardens place themselves in harm’s way in the line of duty. The same can be said for game warden pilots, perhaps even more so. Maine warden pilots are often called upon to assist from the air in searches for missing people. More often than not, the weather is nasty, and warden pilots find themselves flying in dangerous conditions close to the treetops. On May 12, Maine game warden pilot Joshua Tibbetts, 50, lost control of his Cessna 185F and crashed near Schoolhouse Pond north of Farmington. He did not survive. Other Maine warden pilots were involved in fatal crashes in 1956, 1972, 2003 and 2011. Tibbetts, and all the Maine game warden pilots before him, are a special breed. We appreciate their sacrifice. ~ V. Paul Reynolds

Wyeth Foundation’s donation preserves Christina’s Maine world for the public

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 20, 2026

The field in Cushing that was the setting for Wyeth’s masterpiece has been donated to the Georges River Land Trust for the public to enjoy.

Bangor tied a heat record Tuesday. It may break one today.

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 20, 2026

The mercury topped off at 89 degrees Fahrenheit in Bangor on Tuesday, tying the record set for May 19 back in 1962. Bangor has another shot at the record title Wednesday, with the weather service forecasting a high of 87 degrees here. That would surpass that record for May 20 of 86 degrees set in 2003.

Maine’s lumber mills, like the one in Searsmont, have known fire risks

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 20, 2026

Fires and explosions have long been threats to Maine’s lumber and paper mills. In April 2020, a pulp digester exploded at the Androscoggin Mill in Jay, sending smoke and debris more than 100 feet into the air. At Irving Forest Products in Dixfield, an explosion and fire in May 2021 damaged a machine used to move wood chips, and a fire last November caused serious damage to the sawmill building. “The fuel load at a lumber mill is exceedingly high,” said James Graves, director of the Maine Fire Service Institute. “They happen regularly.” But Graves said relatively few are as tragic as the fiery explosion at Robbins Lumber Inc. in Searsmont that injured 12 people and killed Andrew Cross, 27, a member of the Morrill Volunteer Fire Department. Eight were still hospitalized Tuesday.

A Penobscot County sporting camp that hosted star athletes is selling for $1M

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 19, 2026

A longtime Maine sporting camp that hosted renowned professional athletes is on the market for just under $1.1 million. Established in 1898, the South Branch Lake Camps is perched on a roughly 6-acre peninsula, offering more than 1,670 feet of private shoreline. The property in Seboeis Plantation, roughly 45 minutes north of Bangor, contains 11 furnished cabins. The site was used as a sporting camp for decades and hosted celebrities including Babe Ruth, Ted Williams, Bobby Orr and Jerry McKinnis, creator of “The Fishin’ Hole,” a television show that aired for 44 years on ESPN. It’s the second oldest running sporting camp in Maine.

Maine’s biggest ski resort is in a dispute over $150K of taxpayer money

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 20, 2026

Franklin County is asking Maine’s largest ski resort to repay roughly $150,000 in taxpayer money that officials say was improperly charged for an infrastructure project that fell apart. The county agreed in 2020 to subsidize a project by Sugarloaf that would have dammed the south branch of the Carrabassett River at its source, Caribou Pond, which lies in a small, wooded basin about six miles south of the resort’s entrance. The dam would have created a reservoir for the resort to use as a water source for snowmaking. In 2023, Sugarloaf officials said the project would have required construction along a road that intersects with the Appalachian Trail, and it was no longer happening as planned. But Sugarloaf kept charging the county anyway.

Sanford imposes emergency data center moratorium, halting Mousam River project

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 19, 2026

The City Council on Tuesday night approved a three-month emergency moratorium on data centers, temporarily stopping a proposal for a 1,000-acre center along the Mousam River. The council voted unanimously in favor of the 91-day moratorium, which puts a pause on the acceptance, approval or issuance of permits for any large scale data center proposal in the city. The moratorium takes effect immediately and will remain in place until Aug. 12. 

Portland recycling plant to begin $36M expansion

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 19, 2026

Portland recycling company ecomaine will break ground this week on a $36 million expansion that will substantially increase its capacity, allowing it to bring on more member communities. When complete next year, the facility on Blueberry Road will process up to 25 tons per hour, an increase of more than 66% over its current capacity.

EPA Seeks to Gut PFAS Protections, Leaving Millions Exposed to Toxic Forever Chemicals in Tap Water

NATURAL RESOURCES DEFENSE COUNCIL • May 18, 2026

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today proposed to eliminate key current standards set to protect people from unsafe levels of PFAS “forever chemicals” in drinking water, reversing legal protections adopted in 2024. Additionally, the EPA has reversed course and stopped defending the standards in a federal lawsuit filed by industry seeking to eliminate them. The EPA has sought to obscure the impact of the rollback of the PFAS health standards by creating a “PFAS Out” program, but this is a PR stunt. The EPA’s proposals to roll back protections from forever chemicals pose a threat to the health of up to 105 million people across the nation whose water has been contaminated by PFAS.

Column: How not to look like a tourist in Maine

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 18, 2026

If you find yourself among the hordes this summer, here are a few things you can do to make sure you’re giving the right impression.
• Don’t look too nice
• Walk with purpose
• Know how to order
• Talk about how things used to be
• Ignore everything you just read

Kingfield residents site ‘inconsistencies’ in Bowdoin camp proposal

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 18, 2026

Kingfield residents continued pushing back against Bowdoin College’s proposed campsite development during a planning board meeting last week. Meanwhile, students and representatives from the college say fears about traffic congestion are largely unfounded. Bowdoin’s proposed campsite sits on 20.7 acres that the college acquired in November of 2024 along the Carrabassett River. The application seeks seven campsites, allowing 28 tents, a picnic area and a service building, which would house bathrooms and water access. The site will be called the Finnegan McCoul Woodruff Mountain Center, named after the late Bowdoin student and Outdoor Club member.

3 Mainers hurt in ATV crash

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 18, 2026

Lucas Goulet, 20, of Lebanon was driving an ATV with passengers 23-year-old Naven Case of Cape Neddick and 20-year-old Corbin Hopkins of Lebanon on the Farmington Recreation Trail in Rochester, NH, about 9:30 p.m. Goulet hit a closed gate blocking the trail, seriously injuring himself and his passengers. None of the men were wearing helmets or other safety equipment. Investigators believe speed and inattention are factors in the crash.

Opinion: Maine is forged by nature, not AI. Let’s keep it that way.

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 18, 2026

At the annual Maine Tourism Conference recently held in Rockport, keynote speaker Janette Roush, chief AI officer and SVP of innovation at Brand USA, spent 45 minutes attempting to convince the room that using AI to improve productivity is the way of the future. Roush said that the environmental problem with using AI is that companies aren’t overseeing the use of AI for efficiency. AI doesn’t improve efficiency, it replaces jobs, ruins skill sets and your memory. In Maine, we work on old boats, protected land and historic landmarks in addition to screens; we “touch grass” and get dirty. They say “forged by nature” — not AI. ~ Amanda Pleau, Bath

Mills vetoed a data center pause. Towns are looking to pass their own.

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 18, 2026

Weeks after Gov. Janet Mills vetoed a bill to temporarily restrict permitting for new data centers of 20 megawatts or more, at least four towns and cities are considering enacting their own moratoriums. The local pauses are designed to give officials time to review their zoning rules and develop new regulations for large data centers — should they ever come to town. Some, like those in Sanford and Scarborough, come as developers have already proposed building data centers in town. Others, like in Brunswick and Westbrook, are designed to get ahead of potential data center construction. All four communities plan to discuss their proposals at meetings this week.

The state hates these fish, but fishermen love them

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 18, 2026

Northern pike were illegally introduced into the Belgrade Lakes in the 1970s, and since then, they’ve dramatically changed the landscape of fishing in Maine. These toothy predators wiped out populations of landlocked salmon and trout in the Belgrades, and the state has spent decades trying to eradicate them—with no success. Now, pike are found throughout the state, both from that original illegal introduction and from others that followed. Despite state efforts, these fish have flourished, and because they grow to impressive sizes, fishermen have embraced them, chasing giants ever since.

Maine mushroom foragers find treasures in the woods after last year’s disappointments

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 18, 2026

Lagrange fungi farmer Magan Mishio found her first patch of wild black morel mushrooms last week after years of fruitless searching. It was a welcome discovery at the start of Maine’s mushroom season, especially after a dry 2025 made some species hard to find, if they appeared at all. Maine foragers like Mishio are seeing early signs of an abundant spring mushroom season as the soil warms and rain continues to fall. They’re cautiously optimistic about the months to come while expecting climate change will continue shifting how mushrooms fruit in the future.

Investigation into Searsmont mill explosion continues; 10 remain hospitalized

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 17, 2026

Ten people injured in the fire and explosion at a Searsmont lumber mill Friday were still hospitalized as of Sunday afternoon. Katherine Paige, a firefighter for Belmont, was one of many first responders fighting the large fire at Robbins Lumber when the explosion occurred. Paige is being treated for severe injuries at Maine Medical Center in Portland. Morrill firefighter Andrew Cross was killed in the incident at Robbins Lumber.