Midcoast town bans industrial mining to block Canadian company’s plans

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • January 24, 2024

The midcoast town of Hope voted to ban industrial mining Tuesday night in an effort to prevent mining around nearby Crawford Pond, after previously placing a moratorium on the industry for six months. It’s one of three towns that temporarily banned mining after Canadian company Exiro released plans early last year to mine for cobalt, nickel and copper near the pond that neighbors them. The moratoriums were meant to give Union, Warren and Hope time to plan permanent ordinance changes to prevent the mining. The ban passed in Hope with overwhelming support at a town meeting.

Opinion: Maine must develop healthy offshore wind energy

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • January 24, 2024

We simply cannot wait any longer to take bold action to reduce carbon emissions and to transition away from fossil fuels, with our eyes open, recognizing that no matter what choices we make, there will be tradeoffs. Every path toward decarbonization requires hard choices. Developing new large-scale energy projects involves tradeoffs. But the most damaging impacts will result from inaction. the state is considering the best location for a new staging hub to support the development of offshore wind energy in the Gulf of Maine. One site is Sears Island, which was purchased by the state as the location for a future port facility, and the other is Mack Point in Searsport. Regardless of the siting decision, we must move forward. ~ Gary Friedmann, vice chair, Bar Harbor Town Council and president, Maine Climate Action Now

Opinion: A Catholic perspective on evil, flooding and its aftermath

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • January 24, 2024

Catholic teaching holds that evil is a consequence of the brokenness of our world, a world that, while created good by God, is marred by human sin and its ensuing chaos. The floods in Maine are not seen as a wrathful act of God, but as a tragic consequence of our living in a fallen world. The Catholic approach to solving the problem of evil, as seen in the recent floods in Maine, challenges us to see beyond the immediate pain and loss, inspiring a response that encompasses practical aid, environmental stewardship, and a profound faith in the redemptive power of grace. ~ Ryan Bilodeau, communications associate, St. John Paul II parish, Scarborough

Letter: Saving rats is the least of our problems

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • January 24, 2024

An infestation of rats, whether domesticated or not, needs to be exterminated. Kudos to the Portland City Council, whose members had to listen, without laughing out loud, to the “rat savers.” We know the City Council has many more important things to resolve than rats. ~ Maureen George, Wells

ATVers seek a bigger piece of the gas tax

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • January 24, 2024

How the gas tax money the state gives to the ATV, snowmobiling and boating communities toward upkeep of trails and boat facilities is distributed is the same proportions as it was in 2001, even though participation in the three motor sports has changed. ATVs get 0.045 percent of total excise tax. ATV Maine President John Raymond, various ATV clubs and the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife aim to change that, beginning with a new study to look at how much each sector brings to the state’s economy if LD 977 is passed this session.

Maine faces daunting to-do list to recover from recent storms and prepare for more extremes

MAINE PUBLIC • January 23, 2024

State and municipal leaders say they're scrambling to learn as much as they can about the three winter storms that flooded riverfront communities and set high tide records along the coast within the span of one month. Those storms are what prompted an emergency meeting of the Maine Climate Council Tuesday in Augusta. The group gathered to discuss the impacts from the recent storms and share ideas on how Maine communities could better prepare. Some suggested that working waterfronts will need to be reinvented to handle anticipated sea level rise and storm surges.

Supreme Court set to seize EPA's authority

LEAGUE OF CONSERVATION VOTERS • January 23, 2024

The Supreme Court just heard arguments in two critical cases — Relentless, Inc. v. Department of Commerce and Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo — that could gut the federal government's authority to enforce even the most basic environmental protections. In both cases, corporate interests backed by big oil are suing in order to hamstring federal agencies’ authority to protect people from powerful special interests. If these plaintiffs get their way, it would move authority over every area of public policy from public-interest agencies like the EPA to the MAGA-dominated federal courts.

Ocean scientist warns that Maine should expect more severe storms

SPECTRUM NEWS • January 23, 2024

An ocean scientist described Maine’s recent spate of severe storms as “the new normal,” saying that Mainers should not be surprised by surging seas and inland flooding sparked by climate change. “We are now living in a world of extremes, and this is the new normal,” Susie Arnold, director of the Center for Climate and Community at the Island Institute said Tuesday. Arnold’s comments came at a special meeting of the Maine Climate Council called by Gov. Janet Mills following three devastating storms between Dec. 18 and Jan. 13. The council is in the process of updating the state’s four-year climate action plan, which set the goal of decreasing greenhouse gas emissions by 45% by 2030 and reaching carbon neutrality by 2045.

Bill to halt natural gas expansion in Maine prompts energy and climate debate

MAINE PUBLIC • January 23, 2024

A bill that seeks to slow down expansion of natural gas infrastructure in Maine has sparked a robust debate over the energy and climate policy within the State House. Environmentalists insist the bill is a critical step toward a cleaner future but that the measure would not affect existing natural gas customers. But in the latest example of partisan divides over energy policy, Republicans dismiss the bill as government overreach that will only harm Maine residents and businesses.

Bill to scale back natural gas in Maine draws strong opposition at public hearing

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • January 23, 2024

Environmentalists seeking to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Maine testified Tuesday in support of legislation meant to scale back natural gas expansion, while industry representatives and members of the business community countered that doing so would limit consumer choice and damage Maine’s economy.

Lumbermen’s Trail on Katahdin Woods and Waters Scenic Byway becomes a reality

THE COUNTY • January 23, 2024

In early 2023, Katahdin Area Trails, a partner in Patten Area Outdoors,  was awarded a Recreational Trails Program grant to construct a high quality, easy to navigate non-motorized accessible trail. The vision was to complete a short evenly graded trail that would include a children’s Storybook Lane on land behind the Lumbermen’s Museum. The hope was that this trail would be a place for people of all ages and abilities to spend time outdoors together. Patten Area Outdoors, a volunteer group in the region focused on creating non-motorized, accessible outdoor options for the region, says that under the supervision of the Outdoor Sport Institute and Katahdin Area Trails the trail has been completed.

Scientists want to crack the mystery of Maine’s oddly colored lobsters

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • January 23, 2024

Markus Frederich, a professor of marine sciences, and his students plan on using non-invasive DNA-testing methods to finally solve the mystery behind the odd-colored crustaceans. They’ll do that with the help of their test subjects, including a purple lobster named Fig and an orange one-clawed lobster dubbed Peaches that became an internet sensation in June 2023.

Opinion: We can solve the widespread problem of lead in school water

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • January 23, 2024

Last September, Maine released the results of statewide tests of school drinking water for contamination with lead. The findings were concerning. Over a quarter of the samples showed elevated lead levels, some extremely so. For many parents, including me, the problem hits home. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, “even low levels of lead in blood have been shown to affect IQ, ability to pay attention, and academic achievement.” To solve the problem, we need to stop lead exposure at its source. No child should risk lead exposure from a school water fountain. We understand the problem, we know how to solve it, and the time to act is now. ~ Michael Haedicke, Maine chapter of the national Scholars Strategy Network

Biggest recorded snowfalls in Maine history

Q97.9 • January 22, 2024

Nowadays, it seems like snowstorms don't dump as much snow on us as they used to. Is it climate change? A list of the 10 biggest snowfall totals recorded in a single day in Maine shows that:
• Four of the nine largest snowfall totals in Maine occurred in the 21st century (2000-present day).
• The largest snowfall in one day in Maine on record occurred in 2008.
• The oldest date in the list of nine for the most snowfall in one day was in 1898.

Maine solar company accused of defaulting on $260K of auto loans

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • January 22, 2024

A Maine solar company already embroiled in controversy allegedly defaulted on nearly $260,000 of auto loans. Pine Tree Solar defaulted on 18 different auto loans through Camden National Bank, according to a lawsuit filed by the bank on Friday in Bangor District Court. The Hermon-based solar company owes about $259,700 of the original $535,670.

Newly conserved 47 acres of marshland along upper York River viewed as 'climate win'

MAINE PUBLIC • January 22, 2024

Nearly 50 acres of marshland along the upper York River is newly protected under a conservation deal. Amelia Nadilo of the York Land Trust, who worked with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Maine Coast Heritage Trust to secure the parcel from a landowner, calls the deal a climate win. The parcel has been added to the Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge. Refuge manager Karl Stromayer says the marshland is also home to the endangered saltmarsh sparrow, which only nests in saltmarshes along the East Coast.

Maine’s LUPC Confirmation Hearing Once Again Becomes an Unusually Contentious Issue

MAINE WIRE • January 22, 2024

Maine’s Committee on Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry (ACF) failed to confirm the nomination of another member of the state’s Land Use Planning Committee[sic] (LUPC). The ACF met on Monday for a hearing intended to re-confirm Oxford County’s representative on the LUPC, Lee Smith. This followed a controversial meeting of the ACF on Jan. 8th, meant to be a confirmation hearing for Tom Dubois, Franklin County’s nominee for the LUPC, but which turned into an environmental debate about the proposed Pickett Mountain Mine in Maine’s unincorporated territories. All Republicans, except one who was absent, voted against the confirmation of Smith. All the Democrats supported the confirmation, except one who was also absent. The independent member voted with Republicans against Smith’s confirmation. The final vote was five “yes” votes, six “no” votes, and two absent with the ACF failing to re-confirm Smith. Franklin and Oxford counties are left without LUPC representatives before the vote on the Pickett Mountain mine on February 24.

As Mainers use more electricity, plans for a new grid ramp up

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • January 22, 2024

Mainers are increasingly using heat pumps, driving electric vehicles and switching to electric equipment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and the growing demand will test the state’s power grid. Planning to update Maine’s vast electrical infrastructure has begun – the Maine Public Utilities Commission held two work sessions last week after soliciting comments from utilities and other stakeholders – but the upgrades will take years. Environmentalists say Maine utilities’ grid planning must follow a 2019 state law that charged the Maine Climate Council with developing a plan to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 45% by 2030 and 80% by 2050 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2045. The state Public Advocate told regulators reliability at an affordable cost needs to be a top priority in a grid upgrade.

Opinion: Nanoplastics are dangerous – and in your ‘pure’ bottled water

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • January 22, 2024

The shocking part of a recent laboratory study published last week is the revelation that bottled water is laden with even tinier nanoplastic bits and associated chemicals. Nanoplastics are potentially more dangerous than microplastic particles because they are so small they can be absorbed into human cells. But we are not doomed to a life of gulping down plastic. State regulators in California recently approved standards for cleaning and reusing sewage, which is expected to produce drinking water that is in most ways purer than what’s in plastic bottles. ~ Los Angeles Times Editorial Board

Letter: Replace South Portland fishing shacks with a monument

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • January 22, 2024

At first, I was relieved and heartened to learn there were already efforts underway to raise money to rebuild the iconic fishing shacks at Willard Beach. But then I realized this well-meant nostalgic endeavor is pure folly against the power and imminence of the climate crisis. They will just get swept away in the next big storm. We should instead commission an artist to install a sturdy steel sculpture that honors the memory of the history of those shacks while also acknowledging that the climate crisis is here. ~ Jennifer Lunden, Portland