The most comprehensive online source of conservation news and events in Maine and beyond, edited by Jym St. Pierre
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Sincerely,
Jym St. Pierre
Editor, Maine Environmental News
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • January 17, 2026
This winter is shaping up to be one of the best we’ve seen for evening grosbeaks in the state. These large yellow finches, with absolutely massive bills, are fairly common breeders in northern Maine. Pine Grosbeak is a winter visitor to Maine, and technically also a finch, but in a different genus, Pinacola. Evening grosbeaks are in the genus Hesperiphona. Then we have the really confusing rose-breasted grosbeak, which isn’t a finch at all, and instead is in the family Cardinalidae. So “grosbeak” is a bad word to describe relationships, but a good one for describing appearances. One major factor in the abundance of evening grosbeaks lately is tied to the food they are using when nesting, which lately is eastern spruce budworm. Budworms are contributing to the increased population of grosbeaks across the boreal forest where they nest, but it is actually the lack of food in that same area that is driving them south this winter. ~ Maine Audubon Staff Naturalist Doug Hitchcox
ASSOCIATED PRESS • January 17, 2026
At a time when the Trump administration rolled back numerous environmental regulations while global temperatures and U.S. carbon pollution spiked, longtime climate activist Bill McKibben finds hope in something that didn’t seem that strong on a recent single-digit-temperature day: the sun. That sun has provided him cheap power for 25 years, and this month he installed his fourth iteration of solar panels on his Vermont home. In an interview after he set up the new system, he said President Donald Trump’s stance against solar and other cheap green energy will hurt the GOP in this year’s elections as electricity bills rise.
MAINE MONITOR • January 16, 2026
The state awarded $7.5 million to 44 trail projects through the first round of the Maine Trails Program last month, going to efforts that will help communities better prepare trails for storms, protect against erosion, increase accessibility and more. The funding for these projects, which are spread throughout 15 of Maine’s counties, comes from a $30 million bond passed via ballot measure in November 2024. Adam Fisher, the trails planner who oversees the Maine Trails Program, said one of its goals is to see communities build “sustainable trails” that can weather climate change.
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • January 16, 2026
Maine is about to lose its competitive advantage in China’s booming lobster market. Maine exported at least $31.8 million worth of lobster to China in 2024, the last full year of data. On Friday, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Chinese President Xi Jinping announced an agreement-in-principle that gives Chinese electric carmakers access to Canada in exchange for the Maritimes access to China’s vast seafood market. The deal eliminates a 25% punitive tariff on Canadian lobster sales to China, beginning in March and lasting at least through the end of the year. Compare that to American lobster, which faces a 10% punitive tariff on sales into China. That tariff gap will give Canadian lobster dealers a competitive edge they have sorely missed.
BLOOMBERG • January 15, 2026
Trump administration officials vowed to keep US coal power plants operating, casting it as an imperative to meet surging electricity demand and drive a revival of the nation’s industrial base. “The goal is 100% open,” said Interior Secretary Doug Burgum. Trump has moved quickly to dial back regulations and subsidies that have encouraged emissions-free renewable power. Under Trump, the Energy Department also has issued emergency orders requiring some coal plants to keep running, and the Environmental Protection Agency recently rejected a bid by Colorado to force the closing of one of its coal plants in the central part of the state. Meanwhile, the Interior Department has also moved to open more federal land for coal leasing.
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • January 16, 2026
Presumpscot Regional Land Trust updated the Windham Town Council on the state of one of its largest land reserves. Land trust Executive Director Will Sedlack described the East Windham Conservation Area and Lowell Preserve as the “crown jewel” of southern Maine, referring to its 1,110 acres and 13 miles of newly installed trails, that he said was considerably bigger than most of Maine’s state parks.
MAINE MORNING STAR • January 16, 2026
For towns like Beals, whose economies revolve around heritage fisheries, the growing number of aquaculture leases along Maine’s coast warrants vigilance and action. Thirty-three leases were approved in 2025, a 27% increase over the previous five-year average of 24. Since 2022, eight Maine towns have responded by asserting home rule over aquaculture development. As chair of the Beals select board, Glenda Beal is central to efforts to balance stewardship of heritage fisheries and the environment with the potential benefits of aquaculture. The Maine Department of Marine Resources has exclusive authority to lease submerged lands in coastal waters for aquaculture. Largescale aquaculture operations concern Beal the most because they have a demonstrated potential to inflict damage on the local environment and undermine traditional maritime uses. “The state has been erroneously deciding these things with minimal local input, and that’s not right,” Beal said.
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • January 16, 2026
Historic Rangeley is using archaeology to tell one of the oldest human stories in Maine, spotlighting evidence that people lived and traveled through the western mountains thousands of years ago. Archaeological evidence from the Vail Site dates to around 10,700 BCE, when glaciers were retreating and Paleoamerican people hunted caribou across the newly exposed post-glacial tundra. “They were the first humans to exist in current day Maine and are the ancestors of today’s Wabanaki people,” said Michelle Landry, executive director of Historic Rangeley, referring to the Penobscot, Maliseet, Mi’kmaq and Passamaquoddy tribes.
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • January 16, 2026
Steve Levesque’s op-ed, “Setting the record straight on Brunswick foam spill,” shows insensitivity to the impact of the Aug. 19, 2024 PFAS-containing firefighting foam spill at Brunswick Executive Airport on the community and environment. He said the Midcoast Regional Redevelopment Authority (MRRA) was not negligent, but a June 2023 inspection revealed dangerous problems that needed immediate attention. Then, in June 2024, an email warned the potential for an accidental foam discharge was “tremendous.” Despite this, no subsequent inspection or maintenance of the system was done. On Aug. 19, the spill occurred. Many residences have private wells contaminated with PFAS. Neither the Navy nor MRRA has shown any interest in helping to pay for water filtration systems, which cost thousands. That MRRA chose to ignore the results of the inspection and the plea is proof of its negligence. ~ Robert MacEwen, Brunswick
NEWS CENTER MAINE • January 15, 2026
The 85th Maine Agricultural Trades Show wrapped up Thursday in Augusta. The show drew hundreds of farmers, including those who are dealing with contamination from PFAS chemicals. The PFAS Fund has distributed nearly $6 million in farm relief, research projects, and free blood testing to hundreds of families exposed to toxic chemicals. For some, the safety net is a source of hope in an uncertain future. The PFAS Fund has provided over $2.5 million in loans, infrastructure, and income replacement relief. It has also awarded $3 million in research grants for seven projects, including ways to detect PFAS in chicken and eggs and new technology to break down the chemicals in soil. Free blood tests and mental health counseling are available to several hundred families who have been exposed. The Maine CDC is checking in with patients who have high levels of these chemicals in their blood.
MAINE PUBLIC • January 15, 2026
Maine’s Land Use Planning Commission will increase from 9 to 11 commissioners under a new state law. Commissioners will be appointed to represent the Wabanaki Nations as well as the state’s interests within the 10 and a half million acres of the Unorganized Territory. Luke Frankel, Woods, Waters & Wildlife Director with the Natural Resources Council of Maine, said conservationists say the north woods is a globally significant area for migratory birds. "The North Maine Woods is part of the temperate forest ecosystem and is one of the largest unfragmented temperate forest ecosystems on Earth," Frankel said. Frankel said the new law includes term limits and requires commissioners to have qualifications in forestry, land use planning, conservation, fisheries, wildlife, outdoor recreation, and natural resource-based businesses within the Unorganized Territory.
MAINE PUBLIC • January 15, 2026
Two solar farms with owners from outside Maine have sued state energy regulators to block expensive new fees imposed by a rollback of the state's solar energy subsidy program. Berwick Solar and Rumford Solar alleged that last year's law illegally targeted out-of-state developers to benefit the interests of Maine electric customers and voters. The law that rolled back a five-year-old expansion of Maine's Net Energy Billing program would "extract economic value from captive out-of-state project investors and redirect that value to the state's own domestic interests," Berwick Solar and Rumford Solar allege. The solar farms are registered and based in Maine but have owners and members outside the state. Berwick is a 2.5 megawatt array and Rumford is capable of producing 3.5 megawatts.
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • January 15, 2026
The Maine pesticide control board has approved two weedkillers and a potato insecticide that contain forever chemicals, despite the state’s five-year-old law phasing out the sale of products that contain these hazardous substances. The board voted 5-1 in December to allow pesticides containing cyclobutrifluram, epyrifenacil and isocycloseram after a board toxicologist told them the ingredients are not considered to be forever chemicals, or PFAS, under federal law; they are under state law. Environmental advocates and organic farmers condemned the approval, claiming the board is using the narrow federal definition of a forever chemical to ignore Maine’s intent to sunset all PFAS in products made or sold in Maine by 2032.
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • January 15, 2026
For decades, the Wabanaki Nations have asked the state of Maine for one thing above all others: recognition of our inherent sovereignty. Not favors. Not carve-outs. Not special permissions. Simply the same respect for self-government that every other federally recognized tribe in this country enjoys. That request has been consistently denied. We asked for sovereignty. We got i-gaming. Gaming is not sovereignty. Revenue is not self-determination. And economic permission does not replace political recognition. ~ Donna M. Loring, Penobscot Nation elder, Vietnam veteran, author and former state legislator
NORTHERN FOREST CANOE TRAIL • January 15, 2026
After years of deterioration at some sites, crews last year worked to make significant improvements at several campsites and surrounding trails along Maine’s historic Allagash Wilderness Waterway. “We learned from site visits that folks were starting to skip over certain locations because campsites were in varying states of disrepair, and because many of the trails were heavily eroded and muddy,” said Nick Hall, the assistant trail director for the Northern Forest Canoe Trail (NFCT). “Fortunately, we were able to make big improvements across the board and we hope outdoor enthusiasts will take advantage.” The work was led by the NFCT’s Allagash stewardship crew, with support from the Maine Conservation Corps, the Appalachian Mountain Club’s Maine chapter, community volunteers and the Allagash Wilderness Waterway.
WABI-TV5 • January x, 2026
The Frenchman Bay Conservancy based out of Hancock has been conserving Maine lands for 38 years. They’ve worked to conserve more than 25,000 acres to ensure beautiful parts of our state stay that way. Now, they’ve expanded that conservancy with a historic move. Austin Schuver, the director of land protection at the Frenchman Bay Conservancy, has seen firsthand what protecting the lands, waters, and ecosystems of Maine can do. Leaders in the organization have worked for over 10 years to acquire Headwater Bluffs, and now, the 5,793 acre property is permanently protected.It’s the largest single conservation effort in the conservancy’s history. “It’s in between the Amherst community mountain forest and Sunkhaze National Wildlife Refuge, so there’s a huge block of over 40,000 acres of conserved lands that this property is now a part of,” said Schuver.
ASSOCIATED PRESS • January 15, 2026
A federal judge Thursday cleared the way for a New York offshore wind project to resume construction, a victory for the developer who said a Trump administration order to pause it would likely kill the project in a matter of days. District Judge Carl J. Nichols, an appointee of President Donald Trump, ruled construction on the Empire Wind project could go forward while he considers the merits of the government’s order to suspend the project. He faulted the government for not responding to key points in Empire Wind’s court filings, including the contention that the administration violated proper procedure.
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • January 15, 2026
A wood products manufacturer in Burnham is set to shut down April 14, according to a spokesperson. Pride Manufacturing Co. is the world’s largest manufacturer of golf tees and cigar tips, according to the website for its parent company, Tennessee-based PrideSports. It also started making Lincoln Logs, the classic wooden building toy, in 2014. The shutdown comes at a time when forest industry employment in the state is on the decline, despite a rise in wood product manufacturing sales. The Waldo County manufacturer employs 115 people.
SUN JOURNAL • January 15, 2026
In 1983, I was performing caribou research for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service across the entire coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. One day, as we aerially censused the Porcupine caribou herd at their peak post-calving aggregation, I found myself sitting in a canoe in Beaufort Lagoon just over the bank and not 10 feet away from something like 140,000 caribou. It’s long past time to protect the entire Refuge in perpetuity. This is a land where dreams are born and sometimes realized. As our bumper stickers, back in the day, used to read: “140,000 Caribou Can’t be Wrong.” ~ Ed Friedman, Bowdowinham
