ON THE WATER • January 29, 2026
One of the largest successful dam removal efforts in recent years was on Maine’s Penobscot River, where the Veazie and Great Works dams came down, allowing salmon and shad to reach historical spawning grounds. A 2023 report indicated that in the decade since the dams were removed, shad populations had increased by more than 400%, while salmon returns increased by 125%. Now, there’s a chance to open up another iconic Maine River, the Androscoggin as the Brunswick–Topsham dam comes up for relicensing in 2029. In early 2025, a group called Free the Andro formed to raise awareness for this opportunity to “fix” the Androscoggin.