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Jym St. Pierre
Editor, Maine Environmental News

Volunteers Wanted for Invasive Species Removal

Join others on Saturday, August 8, to help pull invasive bittersweet and honeysuckle at Viles Arboretum in Augusta. We will be pulling the bittersweet by hand and using small handsaws to cut down honeysuckle bushes. We provide the tools.

Be Part of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Nights' Dream at Viles Arboretum

Be a part of the magic of the production of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Nights' Dream at the Viles Arboretum in Augusta. We're seeking up to six fun and energetic individuals for each if the six performances to help us manage our unique production on the trail at Viles Arboretum on August 21-30, 2026. Located in Maine's capital city, Viles Arboretum is a 224-acre botanical garden and nature preserve where visitors can experience the beauty and diversity of Maine's landscapes. Admission is always free, and the Arboretum is open every day from sunrise to sunset.

Editorial: Wacky wolf claims persist

MAINE ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS • August 4, 2026

In a column in the Bangor Daily News on August 4, hunting advocate V. Paul Reynolds says that Gerry Lavigne, of the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine, claims “wolves were illegally released, most likely by wolf reintroduction advocates.” Reynolds also says that “a thriving wolf population could literally extirpate white-tailed deer in Maine’s North Woods.” First, the claim accusing wolf restoration advocates is without any evidence. It is blame by unsupported inuendo. Second, the claim that wolves could wipe out the deer herd in northern Maine is scientifically unsubstantiated. Wolf restorations in the West have had the opposite effect, making the elk herd more resilient by culling the weakest. Hunter bias does not equal good science.

Column: These people are threatening Maine’s fish and game

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 4, 2026

Five of the eight gray wolves examined in the Northeast over the past quarter-century have been positively identified as domesticated wolves, according to Gerry Lavigne, a field biologist for the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine. Those wolves were illegally released, most likely by wolf reintroduction advocates, Lavigne said. Why did the feds not try to apprehend and prosecute those who released the wolves? A thriving wolf population could literally extirpate white-tailed deer in Maine’s North Woods. ~ V. Paul Reynolds

Aroostook town prepares to host Maine’s largest muskie derby

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 4, 2026

The annual Fort Kent International Muskie Derby, which brings hundreds of anglers and spectators to northern Maine, starts Friday. Anglers can fish from Friday, Aug. 7, through Sunday, Aug. 9. Now in its 23rd year, the derby draws participants from across the state and beyond. This year, fishers can win a possible purse of $35,000. The fishing area involves more than 225 river miles, including the St. John, Allagash River to Allagash Falls and the Big Black, St. Francis and Little Black rivers, as well as six lakes or ponds that contain muskie. Last year Jim Campbell received the $2,000 prize for a 21.05-pound fish that was 42 5/8 inches long.

Maine’s new strategy to stop another insect disaster in the North Woods

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 4, 2026

Christmas tree farmers in Aroostook County knew trouble was ahead when swarms of spruce budworm moths, some massive enough to be visible on radar, started riding wind currents from Canada into northern Maine in 2019. Within a couple years, Ben Voisine, manager of Allagash View Farms in New Canada, noticed the insects defoliating his trees. Insect specialists say the outbreak, if left unchecked, could last another 10 years and cost Maine’s timber industry $800 million a year. This time, instead of the broad pesticide spraying that failed to stop the last major outbreak, the state is targeting only the most heavily infested areas, and only when the insects are at their most vulnerable stage.

The fungus that could save Maine’s trees one seedling at a time

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 4, 2026

During a major spruce budworm outbreak in the 1990s researchers discovered some healthy fir trees unaffected by the deadly pests. They took needles from the healthy trees to study at their University of New Brunswick lab, and found they contained a fungus with a beneficial relationship with the trees. They succeeded in growing the fungus in a petri dish. The discovery attracted the attention of Irving Woodlands, a division of the Canadian forestry conglomerate J.D. Irving and the largest owner of forested land in Maine. The partnership, which started in 1999, resulted in a novel way to combat future outbreaks: breeding budworm-resistant trees.

South Portland launches a Home Energy Program

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 3, 2026

Do you notice drafts leaking through your walls, windows and doors, but are overwhelmed by the idea of fixing them? Don’t know how to get started prioritizing energy improvements to be more comfortable in your home? A little bit of weatherization can go a long way: It can help your home stay cooler in the summer, and warmer in the winter. Through the city’s new Home Energy Program, we will support you in getting started and learning the skills to continue weatherizing on your own. We’ll also help you understand your home energy systems. Drop into the Sustainability Office at 829 Sawyer St., South Portland, or call on Mondays from 4 to 5:30 p.m. at 207-347-4148. Questions? Reach out to homeenergy@southportland.gov.

Masked bandits ransacked a Maine police department’s dumpster

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 3, 2026

Masked bandits got more than they bargained for Sunday afternoon when they ransacked the Winslow Police Department’s dumpster. Four raccoons found themselves trapped, but two officers, Ellen Stewart and Josh Chouinard, came to their aid. The officers used a two-by-four to make a ramp, which the raccoons used to return to safety. But the jury’s out as to whether they learned their lesson.

Opinion: Air pollution ignores international borders. What to do?

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 3, 2026

For generations, we’ve treated the atmosphere as a free dumping ground. Companies pay for labor, equipment, fuel and raw materials, but most of the costs of carbon pollution are paid by everyone except the polluter — through higher insurance premiums, wildfire damage, drought, public health costs and other economic losses. With a carbon fee companies that produce fossil fuels would based on the carbon those fuels will release. Businesses and consumers then have every incentive to find cleaner, more efficient alternatives. The money doesn’t stay in Washington. Under a carbon fee and dividend system, the revenue is returned directly to American households. And with a carbon border adjustment imports would pay a comparable carbon fee based on the pollution created to make them, allowing American manufacturers to compete. ~ Susan Atkinson,Citizens Climate Lobby

What to do if you see a black bear in Maine

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 3, 2026

Maine is home to between 25,000 and 27,000 black bears — the largest population in the eastern U.S. The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife receives 400 to 700 reports each year of everything from backyard sightings to, say, a bear in a parking garage under a Portland hotel. Black bears rarely become aggressive and attacks are uncommon. However, Mainers can take steps to avoid bears and to prepare for an encounter. At home, remove or secure things that commonly attract black bears, which are most active between April and November. Store garbage cans in a building. Place beehives more than 300 feet from the forest line, harvest honey as soon as possible, and consider installing an electric fence around the hives. While hiking or camping, if a black bear approaches you, make yourself look bigger by raising your arms, and shout. If a bear ends up in a residential area, call a regional wildlife office.

Maine’s cobblestone beaches are magical places

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 3, 2026

In Maine, we’re lucky to have quite a few cobblestone beaches. Worldwide, they’re considered somewhat rare. These fantastical beaches, composed entirely of round stones, form as a result of glacial activity and big waves. The cobblestones are often made from durable rocks left behind by glaciers. They’ve been rounded by being continuously tossed about by waves, then trapped in a cove. I’ve found spectacular cobblestone beaches at Cutler Coast Public Reserved Land in Cutler, Boot Head Preserve in Lubec, Quoddy Head State Park in Lubec, Bog Brook Cove Preserve in Trescott, and Acadia National Park. It’s tempting to select a favorite rock to carry home, but I urge you to leave them where you find them.

Letter: Action needed to stop fish deaths on Penobscot River

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 3, 2026

I live and work on the West Branch of the Penobscot River. On July 27 at 4:30 p.m. I noticed the flow had drastically decreased to 450 cubic feet per second; earlier in the day, it was over 2,000 cfs. My husband was down river at Little A Rapid and found 39 dead baby fish due to being stranded because of the low flow. This event warrants immediate investigation. This type of event seems to happen regularly. It results in significant stress on aquatic habitats throughout the West Branch; resulting in reduced available habitat, increased water temperature, decreased dissolved oxygen levels, and creates detrimental conditions to fish and other aquatic species. River flows need to be maintained at levels sufficient to protect fish populations and aquatic habitat. Action is needed now. ~ Sarah Sindo, Kingfield

Auburn dam removal begins, aimed at freeing up fish, improving water quality

SUN JOURNAL • August 2, 2026

A little-known dam built in the early 1900s for hydroelectric power generation on the Little Androscoggin River is being dismantled. The $3.5 million project, funded by the federal government, has been in the works since 2018, while the concrete structure has been obstructing the waterway for decades. There are 5 dams on the Little Androscoggin River. As long as the Littlefield Dam is obstructing the river, fish are not able to safely navigate it and water temperature and dissolved oxygen levels are negatively impacted by it. There are over 200 Atlantic salmon habitat units and more than 8,000 acres of potential river herring ponds upstream of the dam. NOAA, the state, and conservation groups say the dam’s removal has the potential to reconnect habitat for sea-run fish species like American shad, blueback herring, alewife, and Atlantic salmon.

New bridges span crossings at Farmington’s Mosher Hill Falls

SUN JOURNAL • August 2, 2026

Visitors to Mosher Hill Falls can cross Mosher Stream above and below the waterfall on two aluminum footbridges installed by the High Peaks Alliance. The bridges replace crossings where hikers previously picked their way across wet, loose and slippery rocks. They make it easier to complete the steep loop trail through the 199-acre Bernard and Jean Kinney Family Forest while preserving the trail’s rugged character.

Letter: Trapping is inhumane

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 1, 2026

A recent BDN article listed new animal trapping regulations in Maine. I am amazed that people still use traps. It is inhumane and cruel to use a device that causes severe lacerations, broken bones, joint dislocations or the drowning of wild animals. Once “caught” the creature is typically in severe pain, frightened and totally helpless until the trapper eventually returns. Depending on location, Maine law only requires traps to be checked every five days. There is the real possibility for an animal, including a non-target species such as endangered wildlife or a family pet, to get caught and die a horribly painful death over five days. Why is this activity considered a sport or even permitted? Sounds like the sport is “trapped” in the 1800s. ~ Charles Mitchell, Belfast

Column: If you want to see seabirds, August is your month

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 1, 2026

Atlantic puffin and a handful of other birds benefit from the nutrient rich waters off our shores. ~ Doug Hitchcox

Keeping Maine Beautiful

DOWN EAST magazine • August 2026

The highway crews, bottle redeemers, and altruists who clean up after everyone else.

Opinion: Cause for hope in the face of climate change

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 1, 2026

It is understandable why people succumb to hopelessness about the future habitability of our planet. The extraordinary website “Fix The News,” based in Australia, focuses entirely on good news around the world, and there is plenty of it. Focusing on such positive developments, however, doesn’t mean we can ignore reality. As global temperatures and seal levels continue to rise, climate impacts in the foreseeable future will become more severe. Keeping our foot on the pedal in the transition to renewable energy, we can stay on a trajectory to attain net zero emissions. We may not be able to restore lost coastlines or lost species, but the planet will establish a new equilibrium, and still be habitable. ~ Joseph Hardy, Wells