Special Premiere of Maine Public's Borealis Series, Sep 7

MAINE PUBLIC • August 30, 2023

Join Maine Public at Hannaford Hall on the University of Southern Maine’s Portland Campus on September 7 for a special screening of the first episode of BOREALIS before it airs on Maine Public Television. On hand will be Borealis host Aislinn Sarnacki and members of Maine Public’s staff who were instrumental in bringing Borealis to life, including Maine Public’s President and CEO Rick Schneider, producer Jennifer Rooks, and videographer Brian Bechard. The Oshima Brothers will perform a short set (including the Borealis theme song) to kick off the evening. At USM, Portland, Sep 7, 7-9 pm, free, preregister.

Judge dismisses challenge to Jonesport fish farm approval

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 30, 2023

A Superior Court judge has dismissed a legal challenge to the state’s approval of a fish farm planned for Jonesport, but the company behind the farm won’t begin construction just yet. In a ruling last week, Justice Michaela Murphy determined that the state Board of Environmental Protection did not err when it upheld the state’s approval of Kingfish Maine’s application to discharge treated wastewater from the planned land-based fish farm into Chandler Bay. There still is a pending court appeal in Washington County of the town’s approval of the project. Kingfish officials have said they will wait until the legal challenges are resolved before they start work on the $110 million project, which is expected to result in the creation of roughly 70 full-time jobs at the fish farm.

Maine environmental, labor groups urge better partnership between state and tribes on climate

MAINE PUBLIC • August 30, 2023

A coalition of a dozen Maine environmental and labor organizations is urging Gov. Janet Mills to improve collaboration with the Wabanaki Nations on green power projects. In a letter to Mills, the groups say they fully support her goal of transitioning the state to 100% renewable energy by 2040, but want the administration to more fully collaborate with tribal representatives on the big developments that will be needed to achieve that goal. The letter cites the lack of meaningful tribal representation on the Maine Offshore Wind Port Advisory group. And it notes the concerns that tribal leaders have raised about the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, which they say has not sufficiently consulted with them about offshore wind scoping and permitting. The letter is signed by representatives of Maine's largest environmental groups, and the Maine AFL-CIO and other labor organizations.

Report: Acadia National Park tourism brought $479M to local economy in 2022

NEWS CENTER MAINE • August 30, 2023

A new report from the National Park Service has estimated that tourism from Acadia National Park brought nearly $480 million to the local Maine economy in 2022. The park saw 3.97 million visits in 2022, which provided $479 million in visitor spending, according to the report. That spending supported around 6,700 jobs in the area and had a cumulative benefit of $691 million. The report shows $23.9 billion of direct spending by nearly 312 million park visitors in communities within 60 miles of a national park. This spending supported 378,400 jobs nationally; 314,600 of those jobs are found in these gateway communities. The cumulative benefit to the U.S. economy was $50.3 billion.

6 hikers rescued after 21-hour stay atop Katahdin

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 30, 2023

Six hikers were rescued over the weekend after 21 hours on Katahdin. Two Baxter State Park rangers and three members of North Search and Rescue began ascending Katahdin at 10 p.m. Saturday to reach the distressed hikers, according to North Search and Rescue. But as they made their way up Dudley and Helon Taylor trails, respectively, to converge at the Knife Edge, the weather began to deteriorate. Temperatures began falling and wind speeds gusted up to 30 mph. At 2 a.m., the rescuers made the call to shelter in place on Katahdin, North Search and Rescue said. Once daylight broke Sunday, the rescuers continued to the group of hikers on the other side of the Knife Edge. A Maine National Guard helicopter evacuated one of the hikers about 7:50 a.m., and the rescuers on the ground assisted the other five hikers down Katahdin over 11 hours.

Hurricane Franklin is causing strong rip currents in Maine

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 30, 2023

Swimmers and boaters be warned: Hurricane Franklin is causing dangerous rip currents on the southern coast and midcoast of Maine. The National Weather Service issued a warning for high rip current risk until Thursday evening in coastal York, Sagadahoc, Lincoln, Knox, Waldo and Cumberland counties. Rip currents are strong currents that pull water away from the shore, and in some cases, pull swimmers out to sea.

Dangerous rescue on Maine's tallest mountain takes nearly 24 hours

WMTW-TV8 • August 30, 2023

Rescue teams spent 21 hours working to rescue six people who got into trouble on Mount Katahdin. Late Saturday, Baxter State Park rangers climbed Dudley Trail and North Search and Rescue members climbed the Helon Taylor Trail and converged on Knife's Edge. North Search and Rescue says the situation was stabilized, but as winds gusted to 30 mph and temperatures dropped, the decision was made to shelter in place and hunker down on the mountain until daylight. Just before 8 a.m. Sunday, a Maine National Guard helicopter arrived and within minutes started helping to evacuate people while others started hiking down the Helon Taylor Trail. Rescuers say they spent the next 11 hours lifting, carrying and guiding the hikers down the mountain. Another rescue team member raced up the mountain with several bottles of water after learning supplies were running low and met the team halfway up the trail. The team finally arrived at Roaring Brook where the hikers were met by family and friends.

Column: Witness to a Mysterious and Marvelous Journey

BOOTHBAY REGISTER • August 30, 2023

It was a typical late-summer evening in Ogunquit, one of Maine’s popular seaside towns. We decided to get away from the beehive of activity by strolling the sidewalk around the corner to the oceanside pathway known as Marginal Way. Something caught our eye on the jumble of rocks some 30 feet below on the shore. It was a semipalmated plover. We counted 20 individuals roosting there, yards away from walkers by the dozen. Very few of our fellow human travelers relished the special experience. They felt no connection to the global odyssey of earth’s grand bird migration spectacle. Birds that had perhaps seen polar bears only days ago now stood only feet from all of us on that path on the coast of Maine. Within a few more weeks these same birds could well be sitting among the tangled roots of a steamy hot mangrove forest on the coast of some Central or South American or Caribbean nation. ~ Jeffrey V. Wells and Allison Childs Wells

With eye toward planned transmission project, Albion residents OK moratorium on utility lines, corridors

MORNING SENTINEL • August 30, 2023

Albion residents at a special town meeting this week voted to approve a moratorium on utility lines and corridors that town officials say is meant to send a signal to the Missouri-based power company that’s proposing a transmission corridor through the region extending from Aroostook County. About 50 people residents voted on the question Monday and all were in support of the measure. “The 90-day moratorium will give the town adequate time to work on an ordinance to mitigate the impact of any potential utility corridor,” said Thomas Bolen, chairman of the Albion Transmission Line Committee. Supporters tout the jobs the project would generate, but central Maine farmers say its construction could destroy farms that families have operated for generations by clearing productive agricultural land and driving down property values.

Maine’s most expensive land for sale is in tiny Aroostook town

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 29, 2023

A 3,900-acre parcel in the Aroostook County town of Crystal is the largest and most expensive piece of land for sale in Maine at $3.4 million. The property has brooks, ponds, streams and views of Katahdin, which is about a 90-minute drive away. It has 25 miles of interior roads and gated entrances near several local public maintained roads. It also has grid power at a public road so it is possible to develop it. Potential buyers could include people looking to use it as an investment, such as a buyer from Germany who previously bought large areas of land in Maine. A property in Carroll Plantation on a failed 5,400-acre wind farm in northern Penobscot County, sold for $3.25 million and is the largest and most expensive piece of land in Maine sold so far this year. The Carroll plot includes the ridgeline of Bowers Mountain and much of the terrain of Getchell Mountain. The new owner is a Maine logger who plans to log it for timber.

Column: This popular Maine bird is my favorite, and a loyal hiking companion

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 29, 2023

Recently my memory is filled with thoughts of my wonderful friend, the ubiquitous black-capped chickadee, easily my favorite bird and many times a loyal hiking companion. Occasionally, other species like kinglets, tufted titmouses and white-breasted and red-breasted nuthatches will join them attracted by their calls and activity. ~ Dave Small

Letter: Biden’s push for electric vehicles

THE COUNTY • August 29, 2023

This president is so thoughtful to us average Americans that he wants us all to have electric vehicles by 2035. In fact, he’s trying to ram these down our throats, all in the name of green energy. To buy one you’ll need to shell out over $60,000. To charge one will take an average of an hour, but first, you’ll have to find an empty charging station. According to Google we have all of two stations in the Star City. According to recent reports on Fox News, it’ll actually cost more to charge up your electric vehicle than to pump in a proportionate amount of gasoline. Here’s something most people aren’t aware of because the green climate people don’t want potential customers to know: the electric vehicle batteries are not made to last the natural life of the electric vehicle. ~ Clare Kierstead, Presque Isle

Falmouth retirement community amps up sustainability efforts

FORECASTER • August 29, 2023

From planting gardens to installing solar panels and buying electric vehicles, sustainability practices are in full swing at the OceanView at Falmouth retirement community. The Whipple Farm solar project was completed in June, resulting in more than half of OceanView’s cottages becoming fully solar powered. More solar panel installations are planned. OceanView is also planning to go electric with its entire fleet of company vehicles.

Does Pine Tree Power really have no operation plan if voters approve it?

NEWS CENTER MAINE • August 30, 2023

If Mainers vote yes on Question 3 in November, a public nonprofit would take over CMP and Versant, two private companies that currently hold most of the electrical grid in Maine. That public nonprofit, known as Pine Tree Power, argues it would be a cheaper alternative to CMP and Versant, as the money would stay in Maine. One ad funded by Enmax (parent to Versant) argues that voters would be voting yes on Pine Tree Power without the nonprofit having a plan on how it would operate once taking over utility control. A spokesperson for Our Power said a plan is set in stone, and any fine details would be decided by the board of advisors. 

Sierra Club endorses Maine consumer-owned utility ballot question

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 29, 2023

A ballot measure that calls for the creation of a consumer-owned utility in Maine has received an endorsement from the Sierra Club. Ben Jealous, executive director of the national environmental advocacy group, said in an announcement Tuesday that voters should seize the opportunity to pass Question 3 in the November referendum and create a more responsive utility.

Columbia Falls has extended a large-scale development pause for another 6 months

MAINE PUBLIC • August 29, 2023

The small Down East town that had been eyed as the potential site of the world's tallest flagpole will extend a large-scale development moratorium by another six months. Columbia Falls residents initially approved a six-month pause on major commercial or high-density development back in March. Aga Dixon, the town's attorney, said that the work of drafting new ordinances and regulations to better react to big developments is about halfway complete. Town and planning board officials have been meeting almost weekly, and Dixon said she expects they will present a draft code of ordinances to voters for their consideration sometime this fall or winter. As of Tuesday afternoon, a website for the proposed "Flagpole of Freedom" park appeared to be offline.

Acadia National Park’s outdoor classroom

MAINE PUBLIC • August 29, 2023

In this Borealis story, budding scientists and explorers arrive at the Schoodic Peninsula, the mainland part of Acadia National Park, to embark on an exciting adventure called the Schoodic Education Adventure, or SEA Program for short. Outdoor classroom learning through the SEA Program extends the park's mission of conservation and engagement by turning Maine students into citizen scientists. It's one of the longest running programs of its kind, and the students' research on invasive green crabs in tidepools will go on to support research done by the Gulf of Maine Research Institute.

After court curtails federal power, Biden administration weakens clean water protections

ASSOCIATED PRESS • August 29, 2023

The Biden administration weakened regulations protecting millions of acres of wetlands Tuesday, saying it had no choice after the Supreme Court sharply limited the federal government’s jurisdiction over them. The rule would require that wetlands be more clearly connected to other waters like oceans and rivers, a policy shift that departs from a half-century of federal rules governing the nation’s waterways.

Tiny Washington County town again delays plan to build the world’s tallest flagpole

ASSOCIATED PRESS • August 29, 2023

Plans to build the world’s tallest flagpole are being delayed — again. The tiny town of Columbia Falls in Maine is extending its moratorium on big developments for another six months following a proposal for a flagpole taller than the Empire State Building, with an observation deck and a flag larger than a football field. The planned tourist attraction would also have an auditorium, living history museums and a monument. Town officials said they lacked rules and regulations for such a large project. The town of 485 residents began grappling with zoning regulations after Morrill Worcester proposed a structure stretching skyward.