Down East town likely to delay towering flagpole proposal again

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 21, 2023

Columbia Falls might extend by another six months a temporary ban on major developments, including a potential 1,400-foot tower that would double as a gigantic flagpole. Voters in the small Washington County town adopted a six-month moratorium in March to give the town time to adopt development ordinances that would apply to the enormous structure that would fly an American flag larger than a football field. The tower would anchor a sprawling veterans’ memorial park spread out over 2,500 acres that the Worcester family has said it wants to build in Columbia Falls. Aga Dixon, an attorney hired by the town to help it prepare for a possible formal application to build the park, said Monday that selectmen can decide on their own to extend the voter-approved moratorium for another six months.

Ellsworth wants to block long-term moorings in lakes

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 22, 2023

Ellsworth is moving ahead with implementing rules for mooring boats and other floating structures in its lakes. The City Council voted 4-2 Monday night in preliminary support of implementing rules that would prevent people from mooring boats or floats in local lakes and leaving them there for extended periods of time. The intent of the rules is to bar people from essentially claiming parts of the lakes for themselves by putting in moorings and tying up boats or floating docks for their private use. The issue of setting moorings in local lakes became an issue in 2021, when a couple of local residents who are not lakefront property owners moored what they called a “house float” in Green Lake.

Research at Baxter seeks to identify plants that will adapt to global warming

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 22, 2023

A University of Maine professor wants to know if ancient DNA left behind in the mud and clay under Chimney Pond in Baxter State Park can tell us what kind of plant is most likely to survive global warming, and which ones may need a helping hand to avoid extinction. A team of researchers led by paleoecologist Jacquelynn Gill will examine 13,000 years’ worth of lake sediment found at four Northeast mountain ranges to determine which alpine plants carried here by glaciers in the last ice age are still around today, and which ones have been lost.

Opinion: Maine is not ready for an electric vehicle mandate

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 22, 2023

While EVs are an awesome improvement in automotive technology, don’t tell me and other Mainers that we’re required to purchase one. Supporting the innovation behind EVs and forcing people to buy them are two different concepts. There is no need to suppress consumer choice and compel the transition to electric vehicles that is already underway in the marketplace without government coercion. Unfortunately, our state is now in a position to adopt California-style vehicle regulations pushed by special interests. Their intent is to eventually ban the sale of gas-powered vehicles in Maine as California has planned to do by 2035. EVs remain more expensive than their gas-powered counterparts and EV batteries lose substantial range in cold temperatures. ~ Jessica Nickerson, Maine Policy Institute

Commentary: Inflation Reduction Act protects Maine’s waters – and way of life

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 22, 2023

Our state is for its long, cold winters, but the Gulf of Maine is warming faster than 97% the world’s ocean surface. That spells trouble for Maine’s seafood industry, tourism and our livelihood. Lobster and cod are moving farther north and east. Climate change is also making the waters more acidic. As our waters get warmer, they are rising, making our coastal towns more vulnerable to storm surge and flooding. We must move quickly to reduce emissions now – while recognizing that even if we eliminated all emissions today, sea levels will still rise and the ocean is going to continue to warm for decades. Locals are coming up with ways to address these problems to conserve and protect our ocean. The Inflation Reduction Act is also helping our fishing industry become more resilient through marine debris cleanups. State and federal decision makers must continue to invest in ocean climate action so we can fight for the future we deserve. ~ Michelle Kaufman, Inland Ocean Coalition

Letter: Letter highlighted failures of leadership on climate

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 22, 2023

I applaud the question succinctly asked by a recent letter writer (“Who do you trust on climate policy?”Aug. 17). Much of the world is experiencing ongoing environmental disaster due to irresponsible leadership of our country that has put our planet in peril. The letter writer put the Republican thought process, denying climate change, in sharp relief for us. I hope this will be a reminder to the news media to reach for the global perspective in its reporting, to reach for the higher perspective: the clear skies of cause and effect – and of reason. ~ Abbie Sewall, Brunswick

Letter: There’s more than one incentive to defend our climate

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 22, 2023

An Aug. 17 letter (“Who do you trust on climate policy?”) brought up a good point: There is too much misinformation out there for people to digest. Big Oil is certainly in no rush to give way to a renewable energy economy. Therefore, they spread distortions and half-truths, as well as green wash their own business. They remind me of the tobacco companies that didn’t want people to know nicotine was addicting and cigarettes could lead to cancer. How many times can we be led down the wrong path by greedy executives and politicians? It’s possible to have cheaper alternatives and save the climate at the same time, whether people believe in the latter or not. ~ Jonathan Light, Laguna Niguel, Calif.

This Maine guide and former boxer became the ‘greatest outdoor cook in America’

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 22, 2023

There’s a long history in Maine of larger-than-life outdoorsmen and women. Add to the list a lesser-known but still one-of-a-kind character who helped bring the Maine outdoors to the national masses: Charley Miller, a Bangor native, Maine guide, boxing trainer, occasional writer and lecturer, and the self-proclaimed best outdoor cook in America. When he wasn’t training boxing legends at his gym near Moosehead Lake, or taking celebrities and locals alike on canoe or fly-fishing trips, Miller was hauling his portable outdoor kitchen around in his custom-outfitted station wagon to sportsmen’s shows, Boy Scouts gatherings, private parties and other events.

Mainer turns his passion for hunting into bear scents and traps business

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 22, 2023

A blueberry attractant spray is one of many products Tyler Dodge makes for Wilderness Freaks, a business he owns with his wife, Bailie. “When I started using his scents three or four years ago, I shot a bear every year after,” he said. “That’s why I loved it so much.” It has been a busy 14 months since the Dodges acquired Wilderness Freaks attractants. Tyler Dodge loves hunting, so spending some of his spare time blending scent formulas and creating new ones is a perfect way for him to immerse himself in the sport even further. “Deer hunting’s fun. It’s a blast,” he said. “But bear hunting, there’s nothing like it.” Youth Bear Day is Saturday, Aug. 26, and the regular four-week bait hunting season begins on Aug. 28. Bear trapping runs from Sept. 1 to Oct. 31.

Greenville ski trails closed for the past 19 years are reopening

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 22, 2023

The group that maintains Big Moose Mountain in Greenville is clearing four trails that people last skied nearly two decades ago. Friends of the Mountain, a nonprofit, pledged in March to use $200,000 to improve the ski area, including an overhaul of the lift and parking area upgrades, among other projects. One of those is reclaiming trails on the upper mountain, which began in early July and will cost about $57,000. Clearing the trails, along with the other improvements, is important to some community members whose hopes for a flourishing Moosehead Lake region were crushed late last year when developers working to revitalize the partially defunct ski resort halted their $126.3 million plans after failing to come to terms with James Confalone, who owns the property.

DACF Proposes Expansion of Quarantines to Slow the Spread of Three Tree Killing Invasive Species

MAINE GOVERNMENT NEWS • August 21, 2023

The Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry proposes expanding three forest protection quarantines to slow the spread of emerald ash borer, hemlock woolly adelgid, and European larch canker. Public hearings on September 6, in Augusta and Old Town. Written additional comments due by September 22, 2023, 5 PM.

Invasive freshwater zebra mussels creeping closer to Maine

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 21, 2023

A freshwater mussel that has infested lakes and rivers around the world is creeping closer to Maine, with confirmed sightings in Canada less than 30 miles from the Maine border. The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife issued a warning Monday, calling attention to a new law requiring boaters to drain any water that might contain microscopic larvae and bring zebra mussels into Maine waters. “Zebra mussels have not yet been confirmed in any water of the state of Maine, but represent a high threat level to the health of our waters, fish and wildlife,” the agency said. “Zebra mussel infestations result in irreversible negative impacts on native species and water body systems and are nearly impossible to eradicate once introduced.”

Plaintiffs hope a lawsuit will expand public access along a southern Maine beach

MAINE PUBLIC • August 21, 2023

Enter Moody Beach in the coastal town of Wells and you'll be greeted by signs that declare it's private property. And if there's any question where the public beach ends and the private beach begins, a line of seaweed piled on the sand by one of the homeowners makes it clear. The seaweed border is emblematic of a legal dispute between shoreline homeowners and public beachgoers. About 100 people rallied at the beach on Saturday to draw attention to the issue. In 1989, the Maine Supreme Judicial Court ruled that private property rights extend down to the low tide mark based on a colonial-era law from the 1600s that carves out an exception for limited public use: for fishing, fowling, and navigation. Now a lawsuit seeks to expand and modernize the list of the activities the public is allowed to do on the sand in front of private property owners, from beachcombing to building sandcastles.

Maine's offshore wind research array clears an initial regulatory hurdle

MAINE PUBLIC • August 21, 2023

As momentum builds for developing offshore wind energy in the Gulf of Maine, a proposed research array of wind turbines is one small-step closer to regulatory approval, after a determination from the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. The state of Maine is developing the research array in partnership with New England Aqua Ventus. It would include up to 12 floating wind turbines 44 miles southeast of Portland, generating up to 144 megawatts of power. The federal agency determined that a research lease of up to 10,000 acres in federal waters is consistent with the Maine Coastal Zone Management Program. This lease is a preliminary step that would not authorize the placement of wind turbines, but would allow for the deployment of a meteorological ocean buoy, and other activities to gather data in the lease area.

Auburn plans changes to drop-off recycling after bins overflow on weekends

SUN JOURNAL • August 21, 2023

The city plans to change the details of its recycling program yet again because bins at its drop-off location on Gracelawn Road have been left overflowing on weekends. City Manager Phil Crowell said the program will now have certain hours of operation, and likely reduced hours on weekends due to issues with the drop-off system at the Public Works facility. He said while the city has been working with recycling contractor Casella on the new-look program, the Casella facility is not open on weekends. However, that’s when most people have been bringing material to the drop-off containers, leading to full bins and complaints from residents that they are not able to drop material.

Wolves In Maine: Will Poop Prove They Are Returning to New England?

DISCOVER • August 14, 2023

The presence of wolves in Maine is hotly debated after they were extirpated from the Northeast due to centuries of bounties, habitat alteration and development. But with evidence of a possible wolf roaming the trails, researchers must turn to poop, or scat, to really understand if they’ve returned. Differentiating between different canid species can be challenging, especially from visual observations or scat analysis alone. Wolves, coyotes and domestic dogs can have overlapping characteristics, and hybridization between these species can further complicate identification. John Glowa, the founder of Maine Wolf Coalition (MWC), says differentiating between a wolf, a coyote and a hybrid animal on a trail camera is complicated. “We acknowledge the only way to be certain is through DNA,” Glowa said, “but the evidence we have collected certainly points to an Eastern wolf.” Some of that evidence is scat samples, which were analyzed in 2020. In addition to deploying trail cameras and pouring over footage looking for wolf-like animals, Glowa and a small team of volunteers have been collecting scat for noninvasive genetic sampling. 

Maine's apple season is shaping up to be hit-or-miss

MAINE PUBLIC • August 21, 2023

A period of extreme cold back in February and late-season frosts in May have not been kind to Maine's peaches and apples. Renae Moran, a fruit tree specialist for the University of Maine's Cooperative Extension, estimates that the frosts in May knocked out about half of the state's apple crop. But Maine's peach farmers have fared far worse this year, because of a few days of extreme cold in February. Peaches are difficult to grow in Maine, and the crop is prone to partial or complete loss about every other year or so.

Merrymeeting Bay Bird Walk, Aug 26

FRIENDS OF MERRYMEETING BAY • August 21, 2023

Merrymeeting Bay is internationally recognized for its unique tidal freshwater ecosystem. This ecosystem attracts a diversity of birds drawn to its unique waters and the Bay is recognized by The American Bird Conservancy as a Globally Important Bird Conservation Area. To help you learn more about this habitat and its avian array, Friends of Merrymeeting Bay (FOMB) is pleased to host ornithologist Will Broussard who will lead a morning Bird Walk in Bowdoinham on Saturday, August 26 from 8-10 a.m.

Letter: Mack Point is the better choice for wind port

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 21, 2023

Maine offshore wind port planners now acknowledge the projected construction cost to develop a manufacturing, assembling and launching facility at either Mack Point or Sears Island in Penobscot Bay are essentially the same. And the dredging needed to develop such a port at Mack Point is now understood to be nominal. This limited dredging can be undertaken with little or no impact on water quality, while clear-cutting trees, filling wetlands and harvesting more than a million cubic yards of soil on Sears Island are necessary to develop the facility there. If Maine pursues building an offshore wind port facility in Penobscot Bay, Mack Point is best for business, best for the environment and best for Maine. ~ Stephen Miller, Islesboro Islands Trust

Letter: Vote for Pine Tree Power

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 21, 2023

The reasons to support Pine Tree Power, a nonprofit’s purchase of Versant Power and Central Maine Power, are compelling. Versant and CMP are both primarily owned by large entities based in other countries: Versant in Canada, and CMP in Spain. Millions of dollars flow out of Maine, and out of our country, to their shareholders. Wouldn’t people rather see these millions of dollars poured back into upgrading Maine’s grid infrastructure? I know I would. These large companies are using their inexhaustible resources to overwhelm us with advertising and lobbying. Don’t let them deceive you. People should tell everyone they know to vote for Pine Tree Power, and hurry! ~ Sue Owen, Orono