The most comprehensive online source of conservation news and events in Maine and beyond, edited by Jym St. Pierre
MAINE ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS • May 29, 2020
The Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association is looking for input on this year’s Common Ground Country Fair. The annual fair will be held online this year Sept. 25, 26 and 27. MOFGA wants to hear what people would like to see included and what activities are of the most interest. Fill out the survey by clicking here and be entered for a chance to win a 2020 fair T-shirt when they are available.
MAINE ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS • May 29, 2020
Congresswoman Chellie Pingree today announced Appalachian Mountain Club will receive a grant of $1 million from the North American Wetlands Conservation Act and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to conserve 16,311 acres around the Gulf of Maine and protect over 100 migratory bird species. Appalachian Mountain Club will also receive $3,000,700 in matching funds.
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 29, 2020
This weekend, you’re invited to find a spot to go fishing. And you won’t even need a license. Yes, it’s that time of year again, and the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife is staging a Free Fishing Weekend. While the state temporarily removed the need to hold a fishing license in order to help people find a recreational outlet during the early days of the pandemic, that rule only covered the month of April. Since then, licenses have been required.
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 29, 2020
A federal judge on Friday upheld Gov. Janet Mills’ 14-day quarantine for people coming into Maine despite the U.S. Department of Justice’s argument that the order is unconstitutional because it discriminates against out-of-staters who want to use the state’s campgrounds. U.S. District Judge Lance Walker wrote that the case “pits a prudent fear of a possible explosion of infection against a competing ethic best described as the indomitable human desire to enjoy individual liberty and pursue one’s life,” but that plaintiffs “have not demonstrated a likelihood of success on the merits, a favorable balance of the equities, and the absence of a serious countervailing public interest.
EURASIA REVIEW • My 29, 2020
A new study by researchers at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution found that New England’s historic lobster fishery may turn a higher profit by operating with less gear in the water and a shorter season. The findings could provide a path forward for the lobster fishing industry, which is under pressure to move away from traditional pot fishing that uses long vertical lines of rope known to entangle and kill endangered North Atlantic right whales and other protected species. The study was published this week in the journal Marine Policy.
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 29, 2020
Giant red, purple and yellow jellyfish are washing onto Maine beaches where they haven’t been seen before. They are a jellyfish species named lion’s mane because of their size and the length of the tentacles. They are the largest species of jellyfish in the world and have tentacles that can grow longer than 100 feet. The tentacles can sting and are used to repel predators and stun small fish or crustaceans that they eat. But they are not considered to be a danger to people.
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 29, 2020
As the longest hiking-only footpath in the world, the Appalachian Trail has potential to be a place where the coronavirus is spread to different communities and across state lines. To address this problem, the Appalachian Trail Conservancy recently released updated guidance for visitors. The new guidelines ask visitors to keep hike locations local, minimize time spent in towns and carry a face covering and hand sanitizer in addition to standard hiking gear. In addition, the conservancy asks that visitors refrain from using shared trail resources such as shelters, privies and picnic tables. And thru-hikers (people attempting to hike the entire trail within 12 months) are asked to postpone their journeys for the time being.
MORNING SENTINEL • May 29, 2020
A Waterville-based nonprofit organization that refurbishes and recycles old tech products has reopened its community recycling center after shutting it down due to coronavirus concerns. The organization — Give IT. Get IT. — has a self-serve and drop off building at 60 Industrial St. for businesses, schools and households looking to donate used electronics to be properly recycled.
NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO • May 29, 2020
Older, bigger trees — stalwarts in their respective ecosystems — are being lost at an alarming rate, making the planet's collective forests shorter and younger. Old growth forests absorb and store massive amounts of climate-warming carbon dioxide. They provide habitat for rare and critically endangered species and foster rich biodiversity. And they're disappearing fast. Researchers found that the world lost roughly one-third of its old growth forest between 1900 and 2015. In North America and Europe, where more data was available, they found that tree mortality has doubled in the past 40 years.
GEORGE SMITH’S OUTDOOR NEWS • May 5, 2020
While I have seen bears all over Maine. One night two weeks ago, a bear tore down and busted our bird feeders, right in front of our kitchen window. Linda quickly put out new feeders which she brings in every night. I recommend that you do that, because we have a lot of bears (35,000) and they are not just in rural Maine.
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 29, 2020
Businesses throughout Maine are closing their doors, some permanently and others for the 2020 season. With these closures comes the loss of thousands of full- and part-time jobs that Mainers rely on to pay the mortgage and feed their families. An Oxford Economics analysis pegged Maine as the state most vulnerable economically to a coronavirus shutdown. Where is the science? There’s nothing scientific about the Mills administration’s reopening plan. At best, their actions amount to selective science. ~ Jacob Posik, Maine Policy Institute
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 29, 2020
Japanese knotweed is fast-growing, extremely adaptable and severely invasive. It’s notoriously difficult to kill, and so hardy it’s been known to grow through asphalt, concrete and even the solid foundations of homes. The weed is a native of Asia. It was brought from Japan to the United Kingdom during the Victorian era as an ornamental plant. It came to North America from England in the late 19th century as both an ornamental and to control erosion. Knotweed, which looks like bamboo but is actually a member of the grass family, is really good at reproducing. “It’s probably one of the worst invasives that we have,” Gary Fish, the state horticulturist, said, adding that it is one of 33 plants that are illegal to sell in Maine.
MORNING SENTINEL • May 29, 2020
Central Maine Power is trying to take advantage of Mainers’ vulnerability during a global health crisis by asserting that the NECEC corridor is the solution to repair Maine’s economy. This is simply not true. Real jobs that Mainers have now in the forest products industry and recreational tourism would be in jeopardy if this line is approved. Additionally, renewable solar power expansion in Maine would be stifled. Vote to defeat the CMP corridor in November. ~ Sandra Howard, Caratunk
NATURAL RESOURCES COUNCIL OF MAINE • May 28, 2020
Despite the public health crisis, the Maine Climate Council continues its important work dealing with another crisis: climate change. They've been meeting virtually to develop their recommendations to reduce our state's emissions by at least 80% by 2050. Learn more in this pre-recorded webinar to learn more from the council's working group members. Plus, find out how you can take action.
MOUNT DESERT ISLANDER • May 28, 2020
It is not very far from Acadia to Lewiston as the crow – or, in this case, the peregrine falcon – flies. So, it is not too surprising that a peregrine that hatched and fledged here two years ago now has a nest at the Franco-American Heritage Center. But it is one more good sign for Maine’s breeding peregrine population, which is still listed as endangered by the state.
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 28, 2020
Acadia National Park will reopen its Park Loop Road and public restrooms Monday, and Maine will begin allowing access to several coastal state parks that had been closed since March. The Acadia announcement is the first step toward fully reopening what the National Park Service describes as the “crown jewel of the North Atlantic coast.” The state will allow public access to these 10 parks: Popham Beach State Park, Fort Popham and Fort Baldwin in Phippsburg; Kettle Cove State Park, Two Lights State Park and Crescent Beach State Park in Cape Elizabeth; Reed State Park in Georgetown, Scarborough Beach State Park in Scarborough, Ferry Beach State Park in Saco and Mackworth Island in Falmouth beginning Monday.
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 28, 2020
Etna Pond is a shallow body of water that covers 362 acres in the towns of Etna, Carmel and Stetson. An excellent place for paddling, fishing and using small motorized boats, the pond is split into two basins, which some locals refer to as Big and Little Etna ponds. A narrow section of open water joins these two basins, and flowing out of the smaller of the two is a wide, calm portion of Souadabscook Stream — another great place to explore by boat.
MAINE PUBLIC • May 28, 2020
New research suggests that the U.S. lobster industry could place fewer traps in the water and still gain just as much profit. And that finding could play a role in the debate over what should be required of Maine lobstermen to reduce entanglements with endangered North Atlantic right whales. "We found that Canadian fishers in the Gulf of Maine caught about the same amount of lobster using seven and a half times less effort than Maine fishers on the U.S. side," says lead researcher Hannah Myers.
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 28, 2020
While reports that more out-of-staters returned to their second homes in the Moosehead region earlier than usual this year after learning about the coronavirus, the state requirement that travelers entering Maine self-quarantine for 14 days has had a significant impact on more recent and planned tourist travel. Craig Watt, vice president of the Indian Hill Trading Post in Greenville, said, “I’m expecting to be down 50 to 60 percent this year.”
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 28, 2020
An Eliot man died Saturday after his kayak overturned in the ocean off York. Thomas Ingle, 67, was kayaking in the ocean near Raynes Neck Road about 4:09 p.m. when his kayak overturned on rough seas. Rescuers pulled Ingle from the water, but efforts to revive him were unsuccessful.
