Search underway for missing 18-year-old Down East lobsterman

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 22, 2023

A young fisherman who recently graduated from high school is missing after going out Friday morning to tend his lobster traps off Steuben in Pigeon Hill Bay, near Petit Manan Island. Tylar Michaud, 18, was last heard from on Friday morning. According to the Northern New England sector of the U.S. Coast Guard, searches are underway on beaches in the area, and with planes and boats in the bay. Several other agencies are assisting with the search, the Coast Guard said.

Police rescue peregrine falcon stuck in downtown Ellsworth store

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 22, 2023

Ellsworth police officers rescued a peregrine falcon that had flown into a downtown shop Saturday and got stuck inside against the storefront window. The Ellsworth Police Department received a call from a business saying a “big hawk” had flown into the store, according to a Facebook post by the department. Two officers rescued and released the bird, which was determined to be a peregrine falcon.

Column: The Big Eddy — the Penobscot’s sweet spot

SUN JOURNAL • July 22, 2023

The Big Eddy is a swirling pool in the river below the outlet of Ripogenus Lake and a major hydro dam that controls the flow of water for hydro power, as well as for the benefit of commercial river rafters and fishermen. The combination of deep pools and the cold tail water from the bottom of Ripogenus Lake makes perfect holding habitat for landlocked salmon and brook trout. ~ V. Paul Reynolds

A tale of two Maine dams (and the fish trying to pass through them)

MAINE MONITOR • July 22, 2023

Since 1981, during seasonal fish runs from the sea to inland spawning grounds, observers have kept weekly counts of the fish passing through the fishway at Milltown Dam on the St. Croix River between Calais and Canada — until now. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service issued its last-ever fish count for the dam in late June. Milltown, which is owned by New Brunswick Power, is being decommissioned. Its demolition began this month. Meanwhile, six dams on the Penobscot River around Millinocket owned by Great Lakes Hydro America, a subsidiary of Brookfield Renewables are the largest such relicensing effort currently underway in Maine. These dams have no fish passages built in. Environmental groups, anglers, rafters, local residents, and other observers see relicensing as a generational opportunity to open the books on a dam’s operations and seek important changes.

Opinion: In praise of Maine’s dead zones

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 22, 2023

My friend and I are camping on a remote island in Upper Pierce Pond trying to dodge wet summer weather and catch a few of the pond’s famed landlocked salmon. We’re the only people around. There’s no cell service here, no Wi-Fi network to join. Like many of Maine’s remote waterways, this pond exists in a dead zone where cellphones are useful only as cameras and clocks. Later, there’s a spot on Route 16, heading south, where cell service returns. I know once I reconnect the screen will brighten with notifications, voicemails. I open the driver’s side window, let the cooler morning air come in. There’s fog lifting and patches of blue sky overhead. At least for a little while longer, I ignore my phone completely. ~ Ryan Brod

Sick of hearing about record heat? Scientists say those numbers paint the story of a warming world

ASSOCIATED PRESS • July 22, 2023

The summer of 2023 is behaving like a broken record about broken records. Nearly every major climate-tracking organization proclaimed June the hottest June ever. Then July 4 became the globe’s hottest day according to the University of Maine’s Climate Reanalyzer. It was quickly overtaken by July 5 and July 6. Next came the hottest week, a tad more official, stamped into the books by the World Meteorological Organization and the Japanese Meteorological Agency. With a summer of extreme weather records dominating the news, meteorologists and scientists say records like these give a glimpse of the big picture: a warming planet caused by climate change.

Out for blood: Mosquitoes are buzzing and biting as rains give way to heat

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • July 22, 2023

With plenty of rain in the early summer to help them breed and the arrival of warm and humid weather this week, mosquitoes are out in daunting numbers. And state authorities are urging residents to be on guard. The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention has warned that widespread standing water and increasing heat are ideal conditions for mosquito breeding and biting, and ideal conditions also for the illnesses they transmit, including Eastern Equine Encephalitis virus (EEE), Jamestown Canyon virus and West Nile virus.

Letter: Water levels at Sebago a cause for serious concern

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • July 22, 2023

Sebago Lake’s water levels have been mismanaged for years. Ever since the water maximum height was raised, back in 1987-1988, there has been extensive damage to the quality of the lake water and significant erosion. As the water level maximum increased, so did the amount of phosphorus pouring into the lake. With over 60 years of experience on the lake, pictures I’ve taken recently confirm the problem. ~ Jeff Sizer, Naples

The nearly finished downtown Bangor bee mural is part of a global mission

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 21, 2023

Since 2015, artist Matt Wille has been on a mission to paint 50,000 bees on murals all across the world. He’s painted around 10,000 since his first mural in Florida, and has projects lined up for many more years after he finishes the mural in Bangor next week. Willey’s purpose in this 21-year creative endeavor is to raise awareness around the world about not just the danger that pollinators like honeybees are in, but also the interconnectedness of all living things — from the tiniest insect, to the 7.8 billion human beings on this planet.

Union workers at Westbrook paper mill get raises, bonus

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • July 21, 2023

Unionized workers at the Sappi paper mill in Westbrook have agreed to a new three-year contract that includes 3 percent raises and a $3,800 bonus, union leaders announced Friday. The new contract for 100 members of the United Steelworkers Local 1069 was finalized after only a week of negotiations between management and the union. The Westbrook Sappi mill has about 200 employees, Rondeau said. Papermaking on the site dates back to the S.D. Warren Company in the 1850s. “Westbrook is successful in a very challenging industry,” said Ron Rondeau, a 40-year mill employee and president of the union local.. “Our products are exported all around the world.”

Northeast floods devastate farmers as months of labor, crops swept away

ASSOCIATED PRESS • July 21, 2023

Storms dumped up to two months’ worth of rain in a couple of days last week in parts of the Northeast, surpassing the amount that fell when Tropical Storm Irene blew through in 2011, causing major flooding. Atmospheric scientists say floods occurring in different parts of the world are fueled by climate change, with storms forming in a warmer atmosphere, making extreme rainfall more frequent. The additional warming scientists predict is coming will only make it worse.

Maine pledges to install 175,000 more heat pumps by 2027

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • July 21, 2023

On Friday, Gov. Janet Mills announced Maine had met one of its key climate action plan goals two years early. In 2019, Mills committed to the installation of 100,000 new heat pumps in Maine by 2025. As of June, Maine had provided rebates for the installation of 104,000 pumps. Mills said Maine is now a national leader in heat pump installation, and she wants to sustain the momentum. With White House officials looking on in approval, Mills told a small crowd gathered in Fairfield about Maine’s new goal: 175,000 more heat pumps installed by 2027.

Log cutting marks start of ‘something really big’ at Madison insulation mill

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 21, 2023

Instead of a ribbon, some of Maine’s top politicians and the White House climate adviser celebrated the cutting of a log on Friday to enshrine a pioneering wood fiber insulation mill. After years of pandemic-related hurdles to acquire more than $125 million in public and private financing, TimberHP is now the first company in North America to produce wood fiber insulation. It is already employing 70 people on the site of a paper mill whose closure devastated the Somerset County town of Madison in 2016.

Maine sets new heat pump goal to reduce reliance on heating oil amid worsening climate crisis

SPECTRUM NEWS • July 21, 2023

Mainers thinking of switching to heat pumps ahead of the upcoming winter season may want to call an installer soon. The state set a new goal Friday of adding 175,000 residential and commercial units by 2027. The new goal is necessary because the state has already surpassed — two years ahead of schedule — its goal of 100,000 by 2025. Of those, 13% were commercial installations and the rest were for residential homes, said Michael Stoddard of Efficiency Maine. Moving forward, more emphasis will be placed on helping those with middle and low incomes make the switch, he said.

This hike leads you to an enchanting waterfall on the Appalachian Trail

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 21, 2023

Surrounded by slate walls that reach up to 90 feet tall, Little Wilson Falls is one of the most impressive waterfalls — or series of waterfalls — in Maine. And it’s fairly accessible. The hike, out and back, is just under 2.5 miles. However, you might have to add 1.6 miles onto that, depending on where you park. The trail is maintained by the Maine Appalachian Trail Club. That’s because, in addition to traveling to views of Little Wilson Falls, the blue-blazed trail connects to the AT, providing access to a remote section of the famous trail. ~ Aislinn Sarnacki

Company behind Maine’s new power line proposal makes its case in Windsor, but locals are worried about losing land

SPECTRUM NEWS • July 21, 2023

Jeffrey and Margaret Dyer own 83 acres in Palermo and on a clear day, they can see Mount Washington in the distance. The land has been in Jeffrey’s family for 150 years and they someday hope to give their four children parcels if they decide to raise their families in Waldo County too. But on Thursday, the Dyers stood outside the Commercial Exhibits building at the Windsor Fairgrounds holding a piece of paper that shows a proposed new power line could run right through the middle of their land. The Dyers were two of many who came to the fairgrounds to listen to officials with LS Power Grid Maine, a subsidiary of a Missouri company, explain their proposal for an approximately 150-mile corridor that will bring wind power from Aroostook County to the grid near Windsor. A timeline that shows they hope to receive approval from the PUC in mid-2024, complete right of way acquisitions by late 2025 and be in service by mid-2028.

Neighbors uneasy about transmission line from Aroostook County

WGME-TV13 • July 20, 2023

The "Aroostook Renewable Gateway" will bring renewable energy from a wind farm in Aroostook County 150 miles south to Lincoln County. That's the site of an existing substation, to connect the wind farm to the New England power grid. Right now, that energy generated in Aroostook County goes to the Canadian power grid and is then sold back to US consumers through an American power grid. That creates a lot of extra charges and fees, which this power transmission line would eliminate. But residents along the proposed power line route are not thrilled. The state-contracted company that's building the infrastructure, LS Power, says the route is not finalized. They've sent 3,500 letters inviting landowners affected by the proposed routes to public meetings to hear their questions and concerns.

Shark spotted off Biddeford beach

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 20, 2023

A shark was spotted off the coast of Biddeford on Thursday. A lifeguard spotted the shark off of Middle Beach Thursday afternoon and ordered swimmers to exit the water. Nobody was hurt, and officials gave swimmers permission to reenter the water after the shark swam away.

Over half a million people call on Forest Service to protect mature, old-growth forests and trees

MAINE ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS • July 20, 2023

More than 500,000 people are calling on the U.S. Forest Service to protect mature and old-growth trees and forests from logging on federal land as a cornerstone of U.S. climate policy. In April the Forest Service issued a rulemaking proposal to improve the climate resilience of federally managed forests. The public comment period on the proposal closed today. In addition to the hundreds of thousands of people who weighed in, dozens of environmental and grassroots organizations submitted comments, including the Climate Forests Campaign, a coalition of more than 120 organizations working to protect mature and old-growth trees and forests on federal land from logging.

Maine Calling: Maine's beaches

MAINE PUBLIC • July 20, 2023

Maine’s beaches encourage a sense of peace and wonder, provide respite from the summer heat, and they also face challenges presented by a coast that’s rapidly changing. Learn how the state manages public beaches, what to know about water quality and safety—and what to expect from rising sea levels. Also hear suggestions for great beaches to visit—including hidden gems. Panelists: Meagan Sims, Maine Healthy Beaches Coordinator, Maine DEP: Gary Best, Bureau of Parks and Lands; Jane Anderson, Maine Tourism Association. VIP Caller: John Rumpler, Environment America Research & Policy Center.