Column: Make the ‘8-Mile Wilderness’ an annual trek

MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • November 5, 2023

The 8-Mile Wilderness. What, you’ve never heard of it? You’re familiar with the 100-Mile Wilderness, that 750,000-acre swath of forestland threaded by the Appalachian Trail between Monson and Abol Bridge. The 8-Mile Wilderness, in contrast, is an imaginary place of sorts where hikers go to escape, bond and have fun for a precious few days. The term “8-Mile Wilderness” was coined several years ago, when our group ended up backpacking just 8 miles over three days in the Little Moose Public Land near Greenville. We had a complete blast in the backcountry beauty just the same and the name for these hikes stuck. Each day we walked slowly and looked around a lot, stopping to enjoy every viewpoint. Where is your 8-Mile Wilderness and who are your special trail friends? ~ Carey Kish

Letter: Keep experts in charge of electric grid

KENNEBEC JOURNAL • November 5, 2023

Puerto Rico and Long Island are the only government-owned electricity grids in the country that are operated by a third-party, for-profit contractor. Both are rife with mismanagement and corruption. There are no case studies to support the claim that a politician-controlled utility will increase reliability. I have spent my career working at CMP. Pine Tree Power leaves politicians in control of our electricity grid. We cannot afford to roll the dice on politician-controlled electricity. ~ Jared Epperson, West Gardiner

Letter: CMP, Versant don’t deserve monopoly

CENTRAL MAINE • November 5, 2023

How can you trust a business that didn’t have the sense to not screw up having a monopoly? As someone who has decades of business experience I understand what a gift it is to own a monopoly. Avangrid had a golden goose and fed it french fries until it puked. Now the goose is fat and in trouble. If any for profit company had such a low level of customer service they would lose their customers and go bankrupt. CMP owners have not valued or cherished the monopoly they have and don’t deserve it. ~ Mark Scribner, Kingfield

Grab your binoculars! Maine’s got 290 bird species on the wing worth watching

SUN JOURNAL • November 5, 2023

Doug Hitchcox, the staff naturalist at Maine Audubon, said lots of birds migrate in the fall, making it one of the more fun times to be out birding. Birdcast detected 11 million birds passing over Maine on the evening of Sept. 20, he said. The website tracks nocturnal bird migration in real time. In all, Maine has 290 species of birds, according to the state’s official count, and many can be found throughout the state, while some occur only in portions of the state. Hitchcox encourages everyone to give birding a try. “I joke that if I could go out and see a bobcat or lynx every day, I’d be much more into mammals than birds. But almost anywhere you go, any time of the year, you can find a bird within minutes of looking.”

Column: A good rut to be stuck in. But when?

SUN JOURNAL • November 4, 2023

Many sportsmen count the November deer hunt as the highlight of all of their outdoor passions. If you can figure out what time of the month the rut is at its peak, you stand the best chance of catching a buck when he is distracted with his guard down and his focus is not on danger. ~ V. Paul Reynolds

Trust for Public Land Initiates Historic Land Return to Penobscot Nation in Maine

TRIBAL BUSINESS NEWS • November 4, 2023

National nonprofit Trust for Public Land (TPL) has secured more than 31,000 acres in the Katahdin region of Maine with designs on returning the land to the Penobscot people who originally occupied it. Trust for Public Land bought the land in 2022 from timber management organization Conservation Resources, LLC, for $29.5 million. Now, the organization is hoping to raise $32 million in financing to pay back loans taken out in pursuit of the land and return the acreage to the Penobscot Nation. At the same time, the deal will create “much needed access” to Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument.

Offshore wind projects face economic storm. Cancellations jeopardize Biden clean energy goals

ASSOCIATED PRESS • November 4, 2023

The cancellation of two large offshore wind projects is the latest in a series of setbacks for the nascent U.S. offshore wind industry, jeopardizing the Biden administration’s goals of powering 10 million homes from towering ocean-based turbines by 2030 and establishing a carbon-free electric grid five years later.

Commentary: Pine Tree Power will certainly save Mainers money

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • November 4, 2023

In my long career in electric utility regulation, I have participated in the formation of six different public power utilities. Public ownership of electric utilities, difficult at first, pays huge benefits to consumers within a few years. The people of Maine should be courageous, not frightened, of taking their electricity future into their own hands. Nobody will work harder for a community than the people who live in it. ~ Jim Lazar

Letter: Not enough information for ‘yes’ on Pine Tree Power

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • November 4, 2023

I’ve served Portland as mayor, city councilor and a member of the Maine Legislature. A critical part of those jobs is asking questions and getting answers from proponents about their proposed new laws, particularly on complex initiatives. We cannot learn what Pine Tree Power will cost, nor how many years it will take to determine the price. We’ve seen nothing documenting the impact it would have on our utility bills, on reliability or, importantly, on the clean-energy progress Maine is making. No one really knows what would happen if it were to pass. If proponents cannot or will not provide this information, a “no” vote is the right choice. ~ David Brenerman, Gorham

8 new species added to Maine's endangered and threatened species list

MAINE PUBLIC • November 3, 2023

Four birds, one bat, one bee and a beetle have all been added to the list of Maine's endangered and threatened species. 57 species are labelled as threatened or endangered in Maine. The labels provide them with additional protections and prioritization in conservation efforts.

'Beautiful' Photos of Maine Wolf Spark Outrage—'Haters Simply Love to Hate'

NEWSWEEK • November 3, 2023

"Beautiful" photos of a wolf in Maine have sparked outrage on the internet. The pictures were captured by the Maine Wolf Coalition and posted to Facebook. "We believe the canid in the photo is a wolf based on its physical appearance, size, and behavior. It is well within the size range of Eastern/Algonquin wolves," said John M. Glowa, president of the Maine Wolf Coalition. "We know that this animal fathered at least five pups in 2023. We readily acknowledge that the only way to determine if an animal is a wolf is through DNA analysis. The northeast U.S. may have either gray wolves or Eastern/Algonquin wolves or hybrids of both." Many people agreed that the animal was "beautiful," but not everyone was pleased. Glowa said, "They may falsely believe that documenting an endangered species in Maine may negatively impact the forest products industry. They may oppose any predators that kill "game" animals such as deer or moose because they want to hunt them. Some may simply fear wolves. The simple facts are that wolves are essential to a healthy ecosystem-there is enough prey for wolves and hunters.”

House Republicans rebuff move by Golden to block offshore wind in Gulf of Maine lobster area

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • November 2, 2023

Majority Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives rejected an attempt by Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine, to use federal spending to block offshore wind development in a lobster fishing area of the Gulf of Maine. Golden, who tried to amend 2024 appropriations legislation for the Department of Interior, said he will try again to bar offshore wind development in what’s known as Lobster Management Area 1. His measure sought to prevent funding to lease, license, permit or provide any authorization to develop offshore wind energy that could jeopardize lobster fishing.

Maine conservationists see positive signs in threatened piping plover population

MAINE PUBLIC • November 2, 2023

A record number of breeding pairs of piping plovers nested on Maine's beaches this summer — though fewer chicks appear to have reached flying age. Maine Audubon is reporting a count of 157 breeding pairs of the birds, which are listed as threatened. That represents a 12% increase from last summer, and more than double the number from five years ago.

Column: How I created a safe relationship with my backyard birds

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • November 2, 2023

“My birds” is a phrase I hear more often these days. I suspect that it’s another consequence of a certain global pandemic. I really did get to know some of them personally. And they got to know me. My hairy and downy woodpeckers got used to me hanging around more. They don’t even flinch now when I walk out the door. My chickadees were always semi-tame. I want “my” birds to stay wild. It’s a dangerous world. They need to stay vigilant. I don’t want to excessively encroach on their world. On the other hand, some of them encroach on mine. I watch them. They watch me. We share the same space with mutual respect. ~ Bob Duchesne

Commentary: Better not to take a chance on Pine Tree Power

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • November 2, 2023

For 11 years I served on the board of ISO New England, including 5 years as chair. As New England’s “independent system operator,” it was our responsibility to oversee the grid in our six states to ensure reliability, plan the system and administer markets. The prospect of elected Pine Tree Power board members with no experience in utility policy in charge is, to put it mildly, concerning. The reliability and economics of our grid are complex and changing rapidly and our economy is built on our grid. The ISO-NE board included experienced engineers, system planners, economists and finance experts. None of those independent board members would have served if they had been required to run a political campaign to be a board member. The predictions of bargain basement interest rates by the Pine Tree Power proponents are hopelessly optimistic. They are also promising policies that would likely drive current high interest rates even higher. Let’s not take chances. ~ Philip Shapiro, former board chair of ISO-NE, Biddeford

Letter: Pine Tree Power will let us control our own destiny

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • November 2, 2023

As Maine reduces its carbon footprint, electricity delivery becomes increasingly important. We shouldn’t trust the future of Maine’s electricity delivery to a foreign company when we can control our own destiny. If we vote down Question 3 and continue to receive some of the worst electricity delivery service in the nation while sending profits overseas, we will be getting what we deserve. ~ Steve Heinz, Cumberland Foreside

Letter: It’s ‘no’ on Question 3 until we have more answers

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • November 2, 2023

Statements supporting Pine Tree Power have lacked some important detail regarding costs and profits of the proposed publicly owned utility. The contention that the utility would not pay profits to anybody overlooks the fact that the company hired to manage the operations likely will be part of an out-of-state utility, which will expect to receive profits on its work, and those profits will not remain in Maine. I will vote “No” on Question 3 because I believe that a vote should be postponed until the plans and details of its organization and operation have been developed and publicized. ~ James Harvie, Topsham

31,000 acres of ancestral land could be returned to Penobscot Nation

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • November 1, 2023

A national land trust wants to raise $32 million to return 31,000 acres of ancestral land to the Penobscot Nation in a deal that would increase tribal trust holdings by a third and secure public access to Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument from the south. The California-based Trust for Public Land bought the land last December from Conservation Resources, LLC, a timber management organization, for $29.5 million. Once the trust raises the money to pay off the loans it took to make the acquisition, it will turn the land over to the tribe for placement into its trust holdings.

Auburn delays start of new recycling program

SUN JOURNAL • November 1, 2023

The city’s new-look curbside recycling program, which was originally slated to begin Wednesday, won’t begin until later this month.Tthe program has been delayed due to staffing and finalizing the mobile app that will be offered to customers through Casella.

Officials say Freeport brook dam removals will improve local trout run

TIMES RECORD • November 1, 2023

After three unused dams were removed from Frost Gully Brook in Freeport this summer, stream restoration consultant Alex Abbott saw brook trout start moving upstream to spawn “literally instantly.” Frost Gully Brook stretches a little over 3 miles through Freeport, flowing into the Harraseeket River just below Upper Mast Landing Road before it empties into the sea. The dam had been around since the turn of the 19th century. Millions of dollars have been granted to Maine towns for stream restoration and other climate initiatives.