ASSOCIATED PRESS • October 20, 2023
The upcoming United States winter looks likely to be a bit low on snow and extreme cold outbreaks, with federal forecasters predicting the North to get warmer than normal.
State officials deliberate rezoning request for proposed mine
MAINE PUBLIC • October 19, 2023
After three days of hearings in Millinocket, the Land Use Planning Commission will deliberate on the next steps for a proposed metallic mineral mine project at Pickett Mountain. The commission heard from the mining company, opponents and members of the public. In what is seen as the first test of Maine's strict mining regulations, the panel will next decide on whether to rezone nearly 400 acres in the Katahdin region of Penobscot county. Wolfden Resources says the company is prepared to reach Maine's high bar for mining. Supporters say the mine will bring much-needed jobs and industry to the region, while opponents argue it will pollute the iconic Maine woods and waters.
Feds identify Gulf of Maine area for offshore wind
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 19, 2023
The Biden administration announced Thursday that it has identified a 3.5 million-acre wind energy site in the Gulf of Maine that excludes lobster fishing grounds and right whale areas, drawing praise from environmentalists, the lobster industry and organized labor. Wind power will not likely be generated in the area until at least the next decade.
Climate demonstrator outside L.L. Bean gets surprise visit from CEO
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 19, 2023
Since September, Rixon and a group of fellow retirees have been standing with signs outside L.L. Bean’s sprawling downtown Freeport campus as well as its corporate headquarters just down the road. They have been calling for the retailer to reconsider its relationship with Citibank due to its investments in fossil fuel companies. Rixon got a surprise response Tuesday morning a little before 8 a.m. when L.L. Bean CEO Stephen Smith. Smith explained how L.L. Bean had accomplished a long list of environmental initiatives and listened to Rixon’s point of view. Smith recently wrote, “The card is a significant source of revenue for the company, helping to fund millions of dollars in investments in sustainability and conservation efforts such as renewing our $3 million commitment to the National Park Foundation and endowing a postdoctoral research program at the University of Maine to identify PFAS remediation solutions.”
A look at the secretive, expensive campaign to turn Maine voters against Pine Tree Power
MAINE PUBLIC • October 19, 2023
In Nov. 2021, Portland-based Sea Salt and Spruce Consulting was promoting essential oils and various wellness and social media tips. Less than two years later, the same company is a significant recipient of campaign cash in a referendum that will determine the fate of Maine’s two largest electricity utilities. Why the company was chosen as a vendor and how it spent nearly $800,0000 remains a closely guarded secret, yet it’s part of a sprawling, $32 million effort by Central Maine Power and Versant Power to defeat Question 3 on the November ballot. While much of the utilities' campaign spending is visible to voters through a barrage of television and online ads, a more opaque influencing operation churns through social media, state house lobbyists, consulting firms and paid politicians.
Opinion: Here is the good, the bad and the scary of climate change
TRIBUNE CONTENT AGENCY • October 19, 2023
Climate change is here. We can watch it play out like a horror movie, with our fingers covering our eyes. Or we can get involved. Regardless of political affiliation, we are all in this predicament together. We must work together to solve it. Shed complacency and try on the new identity of “climate hero.” Put away the skeletons of fear and worry. The past is past. Commit to a clean energy future and help make it happen, one small action at a time. ~ Susan Atkinson, Citizens Climate Lobby
Column: Pine Tree Power’s Question 3 provides no real answers
CENTRAL MAINE • October 19, 2023
The big question for Mainers in the Nov. 7 election will be whether to create Pine Tree Power, charged with routing all the electrons that make up our increasingly vital supply of electricity. Question 3 is a big deal. Unfortunately, it’s the wrong question. The biggest structural problem is the witless 2000 law to “deregulate” electric providers. It’s never produced benefits for residential customers, but split generation and transmission functions, leading to the sale of Maine-based companies to out-of-state interests. This, in turn, produced customer service failures that fueled the referendum against CMP’s power line to Canada — power we’d love to have right now. Then there’s a takeover’s cost, $7-$13 billion. When we get into management that things really go haywire. We should focus on the real need: a public power authority to govern generation that can guide the transition to renewables. ~ Douglas Rooks
Letter: A jingle in support of Pine Tree Power
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 19, 2023
I’ve written a jingle in support of Question 3 on the November ballot. To be sung to the tune of an old Robert Hall radio ad:
When the prices go up up up,
And the service goes down down down,
CMP’s the reason, no matter the season,
Dump CMP!
Vote “yes” on 3!
Maybe someone up north can come up with one for “Versant.” ~ Mike Roland, Bowdoinham
Section of Westbrook’s popular River Walk trail closed for repairs
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 18, 2023
A section of Westbrook’s popular River Walk trail will be closed this winter for repairs, Mayor Michael T. Foley announced Wednesday. Foley said in a community message that an inspection of the trail’s boardwalk Wednesday identified “an immediate need to limit access to this section of the walkway to protect pedestrian safety.”
CMP receives $30 million grant to improve grid reliability
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 19, 2023
Central Maine Power has received $30 million from the federal government to install equipment intended to help reduce the frequency and impact of power outages following storms. Increased threats from climate change are part of the motivation for CMP to strengthen Maine’s electrical system. The money is expected to be used to buy equipment mounted on the poles that will act like circuit breakers and allow the grid to rebalance more quickly following outages.
National Parks Traveler's Lights Going Out
NATIONAL PARKS TRAVELER • October 18, 2023
After 18 years of continuous coverage of the U.S. National Park System and the National Park Service, and the issues relating to them —Essential Coverage for Essential Places— National Parks Traveler will go dark after December 31, 2023. NPT been unable to raise the support necessary to hire and retain both the editorial, fundraising, and support staff and services necessary to run an editorially independent nonprofit news operation.
Maine Calling: The future of Maine lobster
MAINE PUBLIC • October 18, 2023
Maine is the nation's leading lobster producer, but the future health of the state's lobster fishery is at risk. We'll discuss challenges brought on by climate change and other environmental threats, increased regulations tied to right-whale protections, and economic pressures. Panelists: Curt Brown, lobsterman; marine biologist, Ready Seafood; Patrice McCarron, president & executive director, Maine Lobstermen's Association. VIP Caller: Kathy Mills, senior scientist, Gulf of Maine Research Institute.
Foreign ownership in CMP parent clouds 2 ballot measures
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 18, 2023
Foreign ownership in the state’s biggest utility figures in two questions on the ballot next month, one that would limit non-U.S. companies from trying to influence Maine elections and another proposing to establish a publicly owned utility. But there’s little consensus on what influence that ownership might hold. Some experts say it doesn't matter anyway because ownership of a regulated utility doesn't translate into governance.
Letter: Column rightly criticized calls for more development
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 18, 2023
All my 70 years of life as a Maine resident, I’ve been confused that expansion, development, more pavement and more jobs and more people equals progress. Who eliminated the state planning office? I’d like to know. If it were still active, would we need, or care, to spend thousands of our dollars on out-of-state “experts”? Ugh. ~ Peter Brown, Freeport [Ed: The Maine State Planning Office was eliminated by Gov. Paul LePage in 2012.]
Opinion: Aroostook Renewable Gateway can deliver low-cost power in Maine
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • October 17, 2023
Over the past year, electricity costs have become a central point of public discussion in Maine. Driving down those costs is an objective we can deliver. Aroostook County has bountiful wind resources, which offer the potential for affordable, locally sourced energy. However, the area lacks the essential electrical infrastructure to link those resources to the grid. The Aroostook Renewable Gateway is an ambitious infrastructure project poised to deliver up to 1,200 megawatts from Aroostook County to central Maine and New England . LS Power Grid Maine was selected in a competitive bid process as the developer of the project and is honored to bring the vision to life. The Gateway is more than a transmission line; it is the portal to a Maine that draws its energy from its own natural resources. ~ Doug Mulvey, LS Power
Old Town sues owner of loud rooster
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • October 17, 2023
The rooster starts his crowing every day around 4 a.m., from his cage in a driveway in the middle of Old Town. His crows bother neighbors living in nearby houses and apartments. After nearly a year of telling the resident the rooster must go, Old Town filed a lawsuit asking a court to force the owner to remove the animals. Property owner and resident Mona Dougherty is violating an Old Town ordinance that prohibits livestock and poultry in single-family and general residence zoned areas.
What to do if you get quilled by a porcupine
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • October 17, 2023
Most folks get excited to spot wildlife while on an outdoor adventure, but not everyone would be thrilled to find themselves in close proximity to a porcupine. Despite what lore around porcupines will tell you, they cannot shoot their quills at you. They can, however, stick you with dozens of quills in an instant if you become too close. If you get quilled by a porcupine then it is important to take immediate action. quickly and safely follow these three steps and seek immediate medical attention.
1. Cut ends of quills to release pressure from inside the quill, which will relax the microscopic barbs and prevent them from burrowing deeper into your skin.
2. Grab the quills individually with pliers or hemostats or even your fingers then twist and pull straight up. The quill should slide out of your skin.
3. Gently wash and disinfect the area and call a doctor. Some experts suggest taking an antihistamine to prevent an allergic reaction but check with your doctor before taking any medicine.
Feds release cleanup plan of Superfund site in Windham
MAINE PUBLIC • October 17, 2023
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has announced plans to clean up a contaminated, former mill property in Windham. The Keddy Mill complex in Windham has been on the EPA's list of Superfund sites since 2014 after studies found PCBs, heavy metals, petroleum products and other contaminants. The property, which is located in the Little Falls area of the Presumpscot River, had been the site of multiple mills beginning in the mid-1700s. But environmental officials believe much of the contamination stems from the 1960s and 1970s when the Keddy Mill Company made steel products at the site. The EPA will demolish the dilapidated mill structures on the 7-acre site, remove contaminated soils, treat the groundwater, restore a portion of the Presumpscot River, and set up ongoing monitoring of environmental conditions.
Turkey pox a concern for hunters and homesteaders
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • October 17, 2023
There is a pox on wild turkeys in Maine. It’s a virus that can make the meat of the game bird unsafe to eat and that can spread to domestic poultry. Cases of avian — or turkey — pox are tracked closely by state wildlife officials. Most recently a case was reported in a wild turkey carcass found in the Sebago area. Since each case could mean the harvested bird is unsafe to eat, officials want hunters to know that just because they shot an infected bird, they aren’t stuck with it. Kelsey Sullivan, biologist with Maine IF&W, said, “We understand they don’t want to eat an unhealthy bird, so they can then go out and take another bird.”
Conservation Law Foundation opposes public power measure
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 17, 2023
The Conservation Law Foundation weighed in Tuesday against a ballot measure to replace Central Maine Power and Versant with a publicly owned utility, saying it’s “not the answer” to Maine’s power company failings. In a posting on CLF’s website, senior attorney Phelps Turner said the two investor-owned utilities “have performance, reliability and customer service problems” that customers are, “understandably, fed up with. However, voting yes on the referendum to create Pine Tree Power is not the answer.” Several other environmental groups support the controversial initiative, including the Sierra Club, Natural Resources Council of Maine, Maine Youth for Climate Justice, and Maine Climate Action Now.