PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • September 26, 2022
The issue of the removal of the Shawmut Dam and impacts on the Sappi mill has been painted as a dichotomy: Keep the dam and keep the mill, or remove the dam which will kill the mill and the hundreds of jobs that it provides. To say that one must be either for the mill and the dam, or against the mill and the dam, is simply a false choice being painted for political reasons. Proponents of dam removal, or major modification, have committed to preserving the water needs of the Sappi mill in any solution that emerges from fish passage discussions, allowing the mill to maintain its operations and the hundreds of jobs it supports. ~ George Lapointe, fishery consultant with more than 30 years experience in Maine.