Do working forest easements work for conservation?

MAINE ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS • October 4, 2023

A new analysis by experts concludes: “Extensive public and private funding has been used to establish “working forest” conservation easements (WFCE) that aim to protect conservation values while maintaining commercial timber production. We use variation in the timing and location of easements to estimate the impacts of WFCEs in Maine from a 33-year time-series of forest loss and harvesting. Overall, WFCEs supported continued harvests, but did not appear to provide substantial ecological benefits.”

Once considered ornamental, knotweed is one of Maine's most damaging invasive plants

MAINE PUBLIC • October 4, 2023

Sometimes confused with bamboo, knotweed has a hollow stem and flat, shovel-shaped leaves as big as your palm. It's been in the U.S. for centuries — initially brought here as an ornamental species. But it's now considered one of the most invasive plants in the world and one of the most damaging in Maine. Japanese knotweed can grow several inches a day, is strong enough to penetrate asphalt, and can regenerate from tiny fragments no longer than your thumbnail.

Kennebunk’s Climate Action Plan is full steam ahead

KENNEBUNK POST • October 4, 2023

Wxtreme weather events this past summer were a bleak reminder of the need for American cities and towns to become more resilient in the face of climate change. Thanks to a task force created last year, Kennebunk is taking steps in that direction. The town is set to join the ranks of a growing number of American municipalities with a Climate Action Plan — a roadmap for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and increasing the town’s resiliency in the fact of the climate emergency.

Opinion: One-size-fits-all approach to PFAS impractical for Maine businesses

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 4, 2023

Local businesses are voicing concern about overreach by the state Legislature to regulate per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, more commonly known as PFAS, as lawmakers begin to consider changes to the overly burdensome mandates required under the state’s first-in-the-nation PFAS in Products law. PFAS plays a significant role in vital industries that fuel Maine’s diverse economy. Even compounds that have been through rigorous testing and commercially approved in the U.S., would trigger a product ban. This would be devastating for businesses. Maine legislators should improve the law to allow for the evaluation of risk associated with each use of PFAS compounds. Regulations should be prioritized based on environmental and human health risks. ~ Shanna Cox, Lewiston Auburn Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce

Letter: Vote ‘yes’ on Question 2 and Question 3

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 4, 2023

In the last two years, over $90 million has been spent by foreign corporations to influence Mainers in referendum campaigns. Opponents of Question 2 claim that corporations have this right because it’s free speech. Mainers are fighting back. The Legislature passed L.D. 1610, An Act to Prohibit Campaign Spending by Foreign Governments, with bipartisan support. That bill targeted companies under foreign government control, not U.S.-owned companies. Gov. Mills vetoed it. It’s now Question 2 on the November ballot. Vote “yes” on Question 2 on Nov. 7. Vote “yes” on 3 to support Pine Tree Power. ~ Rachel Herbener, Belfast

USM community mourns loss of 219-year-old tree

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • October 3, 2023

The moment of silence was deafening. Aaron Witham stood, hand upon the massive, fallen trunk, head bowed in reverence, leading a small group of mourners in honoring a two-century-old tree on the University of Southern Maine campus last week. A few yards away, powerful earth-moving equipment rattled and shook the ground, clearing land for a new arts building. “This thing was an elder to us all,” Witham, USM’s director of sustainability, said. Tropical Storm Lee seriously damaged the tree earlier in September, then the decision was made to cut the rest down for safety reasons. The loss of the familiar, towering beech standing just outside Luther Bonney Hall has since reverberated through the university community.

Portland mayoral hopefuls debate homelessness, climate change

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 3, 2023

Five candidates vying to become Portland’s next mayor debated Tuesday over the city’s top challenges, including climate change. Andrew Zarro said he has been working with Central Maine Power Co. and Sen. Angus King’s office on a proposal to upgrade the city’s electrical grid and triple its capacity to switch to electricity generated by renewables. Pious Ali floated several proposals – creating a municipal, consumer-owned utility company, adopting a carbon impact fee and strengthening the Green New Deal. Mark Dion said he would start by planting trees and looking for ways to protect Commercial Street and the Back Cove from rising sea levels. Dylan Pugh, who works at the Gulf of Maine Research Institute, said he would commission a vulnerability study so the city can mitigate the impacts of climate change, making it a priority to protect the working waterfront. Justin Costa said he would continue efforts to expand electric vehicle charging stations.

Column: Why you hear owls hooting more in October

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • October 3, 2023

Maine has three common nesting owls. One of them, the tiny northern saw-whet owl, generally leaves Maine during the coldest months. The other two don’t migrate. In fact, great horned and barred owls don’t even wander very much. They always have some notion of their territories, and are apt to proclaim it periodically. Mating season has begun. The hootin’ and hollerin’ starts in August, but intensifies in October. Competing owls don’t like to intrude on each other, lest a fight break out. By announcing their territories, they can stay out of each other’s way. ~ Bob Duchesne

State regulators will require a public hearing on Lincoln-Poland Spring contract

MAINE PUBLIC • October 3, 2023

In the wake of public complaints, the Lincoln Water District has been ordered to hold a public meeting on a long-term contract with Poland Spring. Maine Public Utilities Commissioners agreed Monday that while the district is not legally required to hold a public discussion of the contract, the commission will now require a hearing on the matter.

Harpswell will explore proposal to improve public access at Clark Cove, despite neighbors’ concerns

HARPSWELL ANCHOR • October 3, 2023

The town of Harpswell will explore a proposal to improve public access to Clark Cove via state land on Allen Point Road, although neighbors oppose the idea. If the town partners with the state to manage the little-known property, improvements might consist of a gravel parking lot and a path to the water, where visitors could carry in kayaks. Federal and state funds may cover the cost of the work. Hope Hilton, co-chair of the Harpswell Town Lands Committee, presented the proposal to the Select Board. Select Board member David Chipman owns property in the area and called the proposal “a very bad idea.”

Tuesday’s hot weather breaks temperature record in Augusta

KENNEBEC JOURNAL • October 3, 2023

Less than two weeks into autumn, summer-like conditions returned to Augusta on Tuesday, breaking the high temperature record for Oct. 3 set in 1983. By mid-afternoon, the National Weather Service in Gray, had recorded a temperature of 83 degrees in the capital city, which was 4 degrees higher than the previous high of 79 degrees. Ultimately, the temperature reached 85 degrees, tying the maximum temperature recorded for any day in October. That record was set on Oct. 1, 1954.

State regulators to hold additional hearing for proposed mine

MAINE PUBLIC • October 3, 2023

After a push from legislators, state agencies have added an additional public hearing on a proposed mining project in northern Penobscot County. The Land Use Planning Commission has scheduled the session for Oct. 23 in Bangor, a week after three days of hearings in Millinocket. In their petition to the LUPC, legislators said the mine would have a statewide impact, and that the Millinocket location is too remote for some Mainers to attend.

Jared Golden saw ‘no reason’ to defend Kevin McCarthy in leadership fight

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • October 3, 2023

U.S. Rep. Jared Golden voted alongside fellow Democrats Tuesday in favor of a hardline conservative’s motion to oust House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, saying the Republican leader “doesn’t have the pulse” of Maine’s 2nd District. Golden cited McCarthy’s votes against a six-year regulatory freeze on right whale regulations affecting Maine fishermen among other issues.

Opinion: Mining in the Katahdin region could endanger Maine’s outdoor economy

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • October 3, 2023

As longtime owners of sporting camps in Maine, we know the deep connection that a clean and healthy environment has to the state’s economic success. Maine’s North Woods are the backbone of a booming outdoor recreation economy. We cannot afford to put this unique place at risk with a mine. We believe the Land Use Planning Commission must reject Wolfden Resource’s proposed rezoning change to allow the company to develop a metal mine near Pickett Mountain and Mount Chase. ~ Jen Brophy, Red River Camps in Deboullie Township and Igor Sikorsky, Bradford Camps on Munsungan Lake

The Reindeer at the End of the World: Apocalypse, Climate, and Soviet Dreams, Oct 3

MAINE ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS • October 3, 2023

Told as a refutation of the idea that climate change is so apocalyptic all is hopeless, this talk by Bathsheba Demuth looks to the history of Indigenous Chukchi people amid the rise and fall of the Soviet Union in the Arctic to look for lessons in how societies survive massive transitions—and the role of local knowledge, interspecies relationships, and community in doing so. At Bowdoin College, Visual Arts Center, Kresge Auditorium, Brunswick, October 3, 7:30 pm.

Opinion: Look no further than Long Island for a case for public power

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 3, 2023

As the president of the Large Public Power Council and former CEO of the Sacramento Municipal Utility District, I know firsthand the benefits that public power provides customers. In recent months, some have cited LIPA’s experience after buying an investor-owned utility as a scare tactic to say public power won’t work in Maine. Their information is misguided, outdated and not based on facts. The facts show the public power model which Pine Tree Power is seeking works – and puts customers first. ~ John Di Stasio, Large Public Power Council

Opinion: Pine Tree Power is the best choice for our state’s climate goals

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 3, 2023

Pine Tree Power would keep its revenue in Maine working for Maine people instead of sending profits to investors of CMP and Versant in foreign lands. Equally important would be Pine Tree’s responsiveness to the state’s Climate Action Plan goal for carbon neutrality by 2045. ~ Anthony Dater, Kennebunk

Letter: Pine Tree Power a chance for a clean break

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 3, 2023

Mainers are swimming in an ocean of ads warning how awful it would be if Pine Tree Power replaced Central Maine Power and Versant as electricity providers, so let’s see what we have under the present regime. In 2022, the two firms sucked $187 million out of the state. That money could have been far better spent inside our state to deal with the now obvious harm which climate change is doing. As if that weren’t enough, every time a storm breaks, public radio broadcasts news of power outages, which seem to have become routine. Do we really want more of the same? ~ John Raby, Scarborough

Lawmakers hear how other states are catching up to Maine on PFAS regulation

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 2, 2023

Maine will ban the in-state sale of most products that contain a group of potentially harmful chemicals known as PFAS by 2030, but that doesn’t mean state lawmakers won’t try to implement some limited PFAS product bans before its comprehensive ban goes into effect. A legislative committee learned Monday that other states have banned PFAS from products that are still allowed to be sold in Maine with the compounds.

Question 3: What you need to know about the Pine Tree Power referendum

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 2, 2023

Question 3 proposes creating a new publicly owned and controlled power company by taking over the assets of Central Maine Power Co. and Versant Power, which together distribute 97% of Maine’s electricity. The new utility, called Pine Tree Power, is the focus of the most prominent of the eight ballot measures facing voters Nov. 7 and is at the center of a multimillion-dollar political fight played out at forums and ads on the internet and elsewhere. Supporters say the arrangement would ensure local control over the new utility, improve reliability, expand renewable energy, and allow borrowing money at lower interest rates to upgrade and expand the grid. Opponents say there would not be great savings, an elected board would be subject to political whims, litigation and politics would delay greater electrification, and directors could postpone or sideline improvements to the reliability and expansion of the grid.