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Jym St. Pierre
Editor, Maine Environmental News

Letter: Maine needs to wise up about radon risk

CENTRAL MAINE • May 14, 2026

It is sad that the state of Maine does not mandate radon testing in school buildings. In the recent report on the subject, school committees and towns seem to be worried more about the cost of remediation than the effect on the young lives that are potentially being adversely affected. Radon gas can pass through solid concrete as well as cracks and penetrations. It has a greater effect on young people than it does on adults. Every town and city in Maine should be concerned and act. ~ Jonathan Hedman, Gray

Fisherman found dead near Down East island

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 14, 2026

A fisherman died Monday after his boat overturned near an island Down East, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. Officials say a pair of fishermen departed on a 17-foot skiff from a marina on Beals Island, located off the coast of Jonesport in Washington County. They were expected to come back from their trip to Crumple Island around 3 p.m. but did not return. A Coast Guard crew found the fishermen near Crumple Island around 5:30 p.m. One of the fishermen was unresponsive, while the other told authorities a rogue wave had capsized their boat.

Portland kayak business finds new home after Custom House Wharf fire

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 14, 2026

When the massive fire on Custom House Wharf in December destroyed Nanuq Kayaks, friends and fellow paddling enthusiasts told owner Harley Lewin they would help him move boats and gear out of the rubble. There was barely anything left to carry. “What happened was a catastrophe,” Lewin said. On Wednesday, Lewin stood on the floor of 200 Anderson St. in Portland, the new home of his business in East Bayside. The industrial space is different from the shop’s former home on the wharf, where wood-paneled walls and sleek boats lent a clubhouse feel, he said, but he’s glad to be there.

Earthquake shook the ocean floor off midcoast Maine town

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 14, 2026

An earthquake shook the ocean floor off South Bristol on Tuesday afternoon. The magnitude 1.8 temblor shook the ground at a depth of nearly 6 miles about 5.6 miles east-southeast of the Lincoln County town about 2:42 p.m., the U.S. Geological Survey confirmed this week. Since 1997, there have been more than 170 recorded earthquakes in the state.

Column: With Platner, best to focus on the message, not just the messenger

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 14, 2026

I’ve heard only one clunker from Platner’s campaign, the energy plan released last week. It relies on repealing the federal gasoline tax and attempting to replace it with a “windfall profits tax” on oil producers, with more money from a proposed “billionaires tax.” This would be a policy disaster. The problem with the federal gas tax is not that we have it, but that it’s inadequate to maintain existing infrastructure, let alone build climate-friendly replacements. It should be increased, not abolished. ~ Douglas Rooks

Bobby Charles defends aggressive plans to cut spending at Republican debate

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 13, 2026

A debate, hosted by the Maine State Chamber of Commerce and News Center Maine, focused on economic issues including health care, housing, child care and energy. Nearly all the candidates criticized solar and wind subsidies, saying they’ve driven up electricity rates for Mainers. Most called for expanded natural gas pipelines, small modular nuclear reactors and increased hydropower.

Fire at Portland recycling center under investigation

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 13, 2026

The Portland Fire Department says the flames burned in a large pile of metal at a recycling center on Riverside Street, sending a huge plume of smoke into the air.

They aren’t cops. So who are these people in uniforms in downtown Portland?

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 13, 2026

They aren’t police officers, but these uniformed personnel — dubbed “constables” — are part of a new program in the Portland Police Department’s community policing division. The five employees were hired this year to patrol and maintain the city’s public areas and parks.

Telstar teacher rescues amphibians, part of Maine Big Night

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 13, 2026

So far, Maine Big Night — as it’s called — has helped more than 20,000 amphibians cross roads safely. A “big night” is a critical moment in an amphibian’s life cycle, when certain species — prompted by temperature and rainfall — begin a mass migration to breeding grounds. The event can involve large numbers, making it both striking and ecologically important. Volunteers like science teacher Mack Connor also collect data to better understand how wildlife interacts with infrastructure and how design can reduce harm.

Letter: Dismayed at Maine’s growing litter problem

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 13, 2026

One only needs to drive along Maine’s scenic roads and byways, or almost anywhere in the United States, to see bottles, cans, plastic and assorted trash strewn along the roadside, either carelessly tossed from vehicles or blown from uncovered truck loads. For a state that proudly markets itself as “Vacationland: The Way Life Should Be,” and one that depends heavily on tourism, our leaders seem strangely indifferent to Maine’s growing litter problem. ~ Charlie Britton, Southport

Brook trout explode on mouse flies in remote Maine pond

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 13, 2026

Nick Hebert and his friend Clayton Mason recently traveled from their homes in Massachusetts to northern Maine to fly fish for brook trout. Hebert and Mason camped in the North Maine Woods and landed multiple brookies Sunday morning. The pair usually fish the Katahdin region in spring and the Moosehead area in fall. Hebert said they have explored everywhere from the western mountains to the potato and blueberry fields of northeastern Maine. “Every part is beautiful,” he said.

4 economic goals Maine business leaders want the state to reach by 2035

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 12, 2026

Maine businesses are keen to grow and invest in their operations, but they need a more predictable environment and more workers to make it happen, according to a report released Tuesday by the Maine State Chamber of Commerce and the Maine Development Foundation. “Maine Economic Vision 2035” lays out priorities to boost business competitiveness, lower housing costs and increase wages 20% within the next decade. [The report also includes a call to “eliminate housing from the state’s Site Location of Development Law.”]

Maine environmental coalition lays out policy priorities

MAINE PUBLIC • May 12, 2026

More than a dozen environmental groups have laid out their policy priorities for the next five years ahead of a busy election season that will see turnover in the Maine State House and governor's office. The Maine Conservation Alliance's policy guidebook proposes 46 distinct actions across five areas it wants lawmakers and government officials to pursue. Eliza Townsend, conservation policy director at the Appalachian Mountain Club, said, "It isn't that the issues are new, or the strategies to address them are new, but the fact that they are urgent is more evident than ever." The policy guide includes sections on conserving land, water and wildlife, creating healthy and prosperous communities, sovereign Wabanaki nations, clean and affordable energy and changes to government.

Calls to remove Ellsworth dam grow after state issues 2nd water quality denial

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 12, 2026

Calls to remove an Ellsworth dam are mounting after the state signaled it would deny a water quality permit for the second time, renewing questions about the future of the Union River dams. The Maine Department of Environmental Protection has issued a draft denial to Black Bear Hydro Partners — a subsidiary of Brookfield Renewable that owns the Union River dam and the upstream Graham Lake dam — for its second water quality certification application, required for its federal relicensing effort. Black Bear Hydro was denied its last water quality certification in 2020, though the dams continue to operate on a temporary license.

See the alewives return to central Maine

CENTRAL MAINE • May 12, 2026

May marks the start of the annual return of alewives, a species of sea-run herring, to lakes and ponds to spawn. They gather in schools offshore, and as the weather warms, the silvery fish with the dark backs make their way to historic breeding grounds, many of them in central Maine or just a short drive away. On Saturday, Benton is set to host its annual Alewife Festival from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Riverside Park at the town office, located at 1279 Clinton Ave. On May 23, during Memorial Day weekend, the Damariscotta Mills Fish Ladder Restoration organization in Nobleboro plans to host the Run with the Alewives 5K race. Maine Rivers has put together a map of locations where alewives can be seen. 

Game warden crashed plane while helping stock fish in western Maine

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 12, 2026

Game Warden pilot Joshua Tibbetts made a low-altitude turn while helping stock fish in waterways before he was killed in a Tuesday plane crash near a western Maine pond. Flight tracking data showed that Tibbetts, 50, took off around 8 a.m. from Dry Pond Seaplane Base on Crystal Lake in Gray, piloting a Cessna A185F Skywagon. He had served 18 years with the Maine Warden Service and became a warden service pilot in late 2023.

Conservation groups seek to join lawsuit over North Atlantic right whale protections

NEWS CENTER MAINE • May 12, 2026

Multiple conservation organizations are seeking to join a federal lawsuit aimed at protecting the endangered North Atlantic right whale.

Consumers willing to pay more for lobster harvested with ropeless technology, UMaine study finds

UMAINE • May 12, 2026

U.S. consumers are willing to pay more for lobster harvested using ropeless fishing technology designed to reduce whale entanglement risks, according to new University of Maine research. A study by the University of Maine’s Maine Business School found that consumers are willing to pay an average of $3.42 more for a lobster roll made with lobster harvested using ropeless fishing technology when presented with information on animal welfare.

Group Calls On Trump To Nominate A Competent Park Service Director

NATIONAL PARKS TRAVELER • May 12, 2026

The Association of National Park Rangers (ANPR) is calling on President Trump to nominate a competent director of the National Park Service. Trump’s previous pick, Scott Socha, a long-time officer for national park concessionaire Delaware North, was withdrawn by the White House in April after widespread backlash against the choice. The Park Service has been without a Senate-confirmed director since Chuck Sams left the position at the end of the Biden administration. “Accomplishing the National Park Service mission is possible only if we care for the dedicated public servants who protect parks and ensure that the agency that employs them is adequately staffed and supported,” said Mike Pflaum, president of ANPR.