Despite trade deal, U.S. lobster exports to China are down in 2020

MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • August 16, 2020

In February, China vowed to buy more U.S. lobster as part of a trade deal that was supposed to revive the once thriving U.S.-to-China pipeline, but the latest trade data show that has not happened – China has purchased less U.S. lobster in 2020 than it did in 2019, when the trade war was still in full swing. In the first six months of 2020, China bought just $25.9 million of U.S. lobster, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. That is 23 percent less than what it had bought in the first half of 2019, and 61 percent less than its 2018 sales during the same period, in the final months before China slapped a 25 percent retaliatory tariff on U.S. lobster.

More Mainers taking up paddlesports during pandemic

MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • August 16, 2020

Paddlesport guides from Scarborough to Sebago and up the coast to Somes Sound say a growing number of Mainers are taking up paddlesports during the pandemic. Paddlesport outfitters normally are flooded with non-residents during the summer. Out-of-state business has been down this summer, but more Maine residents than ever are booking trips and lessons in kayaks and on paddleboards. Even the fatal white shark attack in Harpswell in July couldn’t slow rentals for long this year. As a result, many paddle businesses have remained open through the pandemic, and some even have recorded a spike in business.

Going home to a papermaking past, Maine native embarks on a deeply personal journey

MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • August 16, 2020

When Kerri Arsenault graduated from high school in 1985, her plan was to leave the town of Mexico, and Maine, to see the world. But some 30 years later, she discovered there was a lot to learn about living in the shadow of the Rumford paper mill. She began to explore the possible health risks and the economic seesaw that holds lives in the balance. She found enough questions worth asking that she’s made Rumford and Mexico the basis of her first book, “Mill Town: Reckoning with What Remains,” which goes on sale Sept. 1. Possible links between cancer and the Rumford mill have earned the area the nickname “Cancer Valley.”

Editorial: Maine supreme court upholds rule of law in NECEC case

MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • August 16, 2020

The Maine Supreme Judicial Court ruled last week that the state Public Utilities Commission and the courts had the power to decide whether a project complies with the applicable  laws and regulations. After a lengthy process, the PUC made a decision that was upheld on appeal, and the justices said you can’t pass a law ordering them to reverse their decision – as the referendum backers sought to do. While supporters of the ballot question are understandably disappointed that they won’t have a chance to make their case in a statewide campaign, they should, on some level, appreciate this decision. When we see a president in Washington use executive orders to subvert the will of Congress – and when, for partisan reasons, Congress lets him do it – we should all be aware of the need for limited power of the legislative, executive and judicial branches of government.

Maine Voices: We can’t let food sit and rot while our neighbors go hungry

MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • August 16, 2020

Wherever you are – city, suburb, small town or rural area – take a look around at all the beauty that’s in bloom. Map the edibles you see along roadsides and in yards; be brave enough to knock on doors and ask homeowners if they’re willing to share some of the fruit. The next step is to coordinate the harvest, because many hands will be needed to pick, pack and deliver your bounty to food banks. More people are hungry every day, and this fall there will again be food rotting on the ground unless we act. Find your piece of the orchard – fruit trees, elderberries, quince, rhubarb, whatever grows in your area – and see that it gets harvested. See that it gets distributed. ~ Lindsay Knapp, Portland-area resident, Forgotten Orchard

Letter: NECEC backers don’t understand Maine

MORNING SENTINEL • August 16, 2020

Spanish Iberdrola/Avangrid/CMP’s proposed boondoggle to slash a 53-mile swath through Maine’s beautiful western hills (for transmission to Massachusetts would provide scant benefit to Maine and her citizens, and leave in its wake a hideous permanent scar. We need to look beyond the hype spewed by foreigners who believe it is their right to dictate what is “best” for us, and set the record straight come November. The CEC is not needed, will not improve the environment, and is about just one thing: greenbacks for a foreign conglomerate and a few of their politically elite allies who wish we would just roll over and let them take what they want. ~ Gary Henry, Winslow

Growing pains on Maine’s many lakes

SUN JOURNAL • August 16, 2020

As ever more people find their way to these serene shores, the more than 2,600 great ponds and magnificent lakes that dot the state’s landscape are experiencing some growing pains that are increasingly complicating the lives of those who enjoy them. From mooring disputes to rental house boats to Jet Skis, the state's great ponds are seeing an uptick in disputes related to ever more use.

Opinion: Climate crisis demands diverse leadership

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 15, 2020

With California Sen. Kamala Harris as the Democratic pick for vice president, and Rep. Ilhan Omar winning her Minnesota primary on Tuesday, there is new reason to be optimistic about transformative national action on climate and energy. These pioneering women will work to shift priorities to ensure climate and energy policy is fair, just and inclusive. Today, it is anything but. It is time to grow the Squad and demand antiracist feminist leadership to restructure society for inclusive healthy prosperity for all. ~ Jennie C. Stephens, Northeastern University

Don’t poop in Long Lake, neighboring towns plead

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 15, 2020

The boaters and swimmers flocking to Long Lake in southwestern Maine for safe outdoor recreation during the pandemic are boosting local businesses, but some people are leaving behind something unwanted. Multiple complaints about human poop on shorelines and on private property prompted the head of the Lakes Environmental Association to write to the Bridgton selectboard in late July, asking it to install portable toilets near a popular boat launch.

Rare bird swimming in Togus Pond in Augusta

KENNEBEC JOURNAL • August 15, 2020

An extremely rare bird, only the second Clark’s grebe ever recorded in Maine, has taken a liking to Togus Pond, where it spent at least the last week fishing and being admired, and photographed, by birdwatchers.The bird species, which normally migrates between the western part of the country and the west coast, and doesn’t typically venture east of the Mississippi, has only been spotted once before in Maine.

Proposed mine near Mt. Chase draws opposition from environmental advocacy group

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 15, 2020

The Natural Resources Council of Maine recently raised several concerns regarding a proposed metal mine near the town of Patten. The mine has been proposed by Wolfden Resources, a Canadian company. Recently, Wolfden’s petition to rezone 528 acres of land around Pickett Mountain was accepted as complete by the Land Use Planning Commission. Nick Bennett, a staff scientist at the NRCM, said, “There are no mining companies in the world that can treat waste from that process to be as clean as natural groundwater.” Bennett said NRCM, as well as LUPC, repeatedly had asked Wolfden to provide an example of a mine that could do this, but they failed to do so. He said if they could not treat their wastewater as cleanly as they claimed, it could cause “tremendous damage” to ponds and trout streams in the area, potentially reaching nearby Baxter State Park and Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument.

Remembering the ‘Old County Woman’

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 15, 2020

Aroostook County lost one of its treasures last week when Glenna Johnson Smith died at age 100. The lives of countless people are richer because they knew her as a teacher, writer, editor and friend. Glenna’s belief in the value of every human being was fierce. Her students remember her giving them confidence to be who they were, rather than who they thought others expected them to be.

Column: Hat tip for sneaking a peek on the fly

SUN JOURNAL • August 15, 2020

More than enough books have been written about fly fishing to fill the shelves on one floor at the Library of Congress. What I have yet to find in all of this literature, however, is much about a fly fisherman’s ethical obligations when fishing solo, or when sharing a popular piece of water with a fellow angler. Most fly fishermen that I have encountered over the years tend to be friendly, polite, even to the point of being thoughtful. The Golden Rule can be an ethical guide: treat your fellow angler as you would expect to be treated by him or her. The understood exception to all of this civility and propriety is when there is a snowstorm of caddis flies skittering hither and yon over, about and around the salmon waters of the Big Eddy on the West Branch of the Penobscot River. Then all bets are off. ~ V. Paul Reynolds

Commentary: Maine’s renewable-energy industry gets a double shot in the arm

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 15, 2020

This week, Maine put out the welcome mat and opened the door to being a leader in clean energy. First, two solar development companies on both sides of the Atlantic joined forces to advance projects to generate 350 megawatts of renewable energy capacity across eight Maine communities. The next day, a $100 million joint venture publicly emerged to develop floating offshore wind technology off the coast of Maine. Energy is valuable to the Maine economy, and strong public-private partnerships like these will fuel economic development and generate sustainable jobs in the state. Also, they will help reach the goal to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions by at least 80 percent by 2050. ~ Jeff Marks, Acadia Center, Rockport

Letter: NECEC will never be good for Maine

SUN JOURNAL • August 15, 2020

In light of the recent Maine Supreme Court decision regarding the unconstitutionality of the referendum on the NECEC, I have a few comments about this entire process. The Maine Public Utilities Commission is comprised of three people in appointed positions none of whom have any educational or practical work experience in the natural resource use/conservation sector. The “Say No to NECEC” PAC has nearly 10,000 members, takes no corporate money, and has hundreds of people, if not more, who have advanced university degrees and decades of practical experience in the natural resource use/management sector. How could this possibly be a balanced and accurate representation for Maine? ~ Richard Aishton, Farmington

Nationwide auction fundraiser for Shiloh Pond Conservation Project

DAILY BULLDOG • August 14, 2020

A media company based in Montana is holding an auction this week to close out fundraising on the High Peaks Alliance’s (HPA) Shiloh Pond conservation project in Kingfield, Maine. HPA has been working to conserve Shiloh Pond in partnership with the Trust for Public Land, with the goal of raising enough funding to give this property over to the Town of Kingfield at no cost to the local taxpayers. Once successful, this will be Kingfield’s first conservation land. The Shiloh Pond auction was featured in the first 10 minutes of Ep. 233 of the MeatEater podcast.

Katahdin Woods & Waters: 4 Years of Progress

NATURAL RESOURCES COUNCIL OF MAINE • August 14, 2020

Katahdin Woods & Waters National Monument is turning four in August 2020. In this pre-recorded presentation, you will hear from: Andrew Bossie, Friends of Katahdin Woods & Waters; Lindsay Hill Downing, Owner of Mt Chase Lodge; Kristen Brengel, National Parks Conservation Association.

Several crews put out forest fire at University of Maine trails

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 14, 2020

Fire crews from Old Town and the surrounding area spent about three hours fighting a small forest fire that broke out on the University of Maine trail system Friday afternoon. The fire, which encompassed less than one acre, was first reported to the Maine Forest Service around 12:30 p.m. There were no reported injuries. The cause of the fire has not been determined

Maine Biomass Energy Company Files Breach Of Contract Complaint Against KMW Energy

MAINE PUBLIC • August 14, 2020

A Maine biomass energy company has filed a breach of contract complaint in federal court against Canadian-based KMW Energy. The complaint alleges that a faulty steam turbine KMW delivered two and a half years ago to Georges River Energy (GRE) in Searsmont will cost it in excess of $10 million. Because KMW is insolvent, GRE is demanding that the Canadian firm's insurance company replace the faulty turbine and pay damages.

If you unbuild it, they will come—the fish, that is

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC • August 14, 2020

There are now 60 to 100 alewife runs throughout Maine and the numbers keep going up as more dams are removed, enabling the return of not only alewives but also other migratory fish: salmon, shad, sturgeon, blueback herring, striped bass, eels. He rattles off some statistics: The Kennebec alewife run, no longer stoppered by the Edwards Dam, is estimated at about five million. The Penobscot, reopened by the taking down of Great Works and Veazie Dams in 2012 and 2013 respectively, now has two to three million alewives swimming upriver.