Opinion: The Katahdin region is sacred and is no place for a mine

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • February 8, 2024

Our homelands are at risk. The lands of our ancestors — where our people have been stewards for thousands of years — face an urgent threat from Wolfden Resources’ proposed mine. The company is seeking to rezone lands near Pickett Mountain in the Katahdin region and move forward with its controversial mining operation. Wolfden has shown blatant disrespect for the Wabanaki Nations. Do we really want to risk a place as special as this on an unproven company making grandiose promises? The Penobscot Nation, alongside our brothers and sisters in the Wabanaki Confederacy, continues to stand in firm opposition to this unproven mining company’s proposal. ~ Maulian Bryant, Penobscot Nation tribal ambassador

Opinion: Maine’s recent storms show us climate action cannot wait

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • February 8, 2024

Young people like me are increasingly worried about the reality of climate change. With the devastating damage brought by recent storms, this reality has become even clearer here in Maine. Action must happen now to address it. We cannot focus just on returning to the way things were or on upgrading our infrastructure to withstand future storms. We must go further to stop the source of these extreme weather events. Speak up to your elected officials at all levels of government; support policies that will stop climate change; campaign and vote for candidates who will support these policies; make changes in your own life to lower your carbon footprint; tell your friends and neighbors to take action as well. ~ Connor Ransom, student at Colby College

Letter: EVs can keep Maine healthy and pristine

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • February 8, 2024

Passing the Advanced Clean Cars II Standards will make it easier for everyone to transition to an EV, by ensuring that manufacturers supply Maine with a greater number and variety of affordable new EVs, in turn stimulating the used EV market. If we don’t pass it, affordable EVs will go to states that do have these standards, limiting access to new and used EVs in Maine for years to come. ~ Laurie Manos, Harpswell

First phase of Gorham housing development moves forward

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • February 7, 2024

The first phase of the large Gorham housing development moved ahead Monday with unanimous Planning Board preliminary approval. KV Enterprises developers hope to begin construction this spring on 43 single-family homes in the initial phase of a planned mix of 96 homes and 295 multifamily units. Developers need the Town Council’s permission to build a road on town-owned property. They are also seeking to increase the pace of buildout from 10 units a year allowed under the existing growth ordinance to 15. The project is proposed for a 131-acre tract, and 51 acres of it off New Portland Road would be conserved.

A Down East town has questions after world’s tallest flagpole project is scrapped

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • February 7, 2024

Though the Worcester family has dropped its pursuit of a $1 billion flagpole and patriotism park in Washington County, officials in Columbia Falls, the small Maine town where the park was to be located, still have concerns about the proposal’s impact. The Worcesters did not approach the town about annexing land in the unorganized territory — a move to avoid scrutiny by the state Land Use Planning Commission — until after legislators drafted a bill. The town has not been given a copy of any survey of the land, which would show who owns it, and does not know what may exist on it. David Perham, chairman of the town’s planning board, said the town was “surprised” by the Worcesters’ annexation idea and that the skyscraper tower and surrounding buildings would have been the largest development project ever in Maine’s history. “It was under very shady circumstances to begin with,” Jeff Green, one of the town’s three elected selectmen, said of the annexation bill.

This Maine-made wood insulation is starting to catch on

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • February 7, 2024

Wood fiber insulation, made for the first time in North America by Madison manufacturer TimberHP, promises to be the next big thing in Maine construction. Production of TimberHP’s first product, a blown-in insulation, began last summer in Madison’s old paper mill. It is just starting to catch on. A 65-unit workforce housing development in Westbrook is using it. The College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor has installed it in two buildings, and the company is trying to quickly expand its use in Maine.

Town of Poland to honor late forester Fred Huntress

SUN JOURNAL • February 7, 2024

The town will pay tribute to the late Fred Huntress with a memorial bench to be placed in the center of the village. The Select Board committed $5,500 to the endeavor at Tuesday night’s meeting. In addition, Selectperson Stephen Robinson said the town’s Conservation Commission plans to add a bronze plaque and plant a white oak honoring Huntress, an acclaimed Maine forester who served in that capacity for the town from 1964 until his passing in November 2023.

State lowers Jay’s valuation by $93.6 million because of paper mill downsizing, closure

SUN JOURNAL • February 7, 2024

The state has lowered the town’s property valuation by $93.6 million because of Pixelle Specialty Solutions’ downsizing and eventual closure of the Androscoggin Mill in March 2023. It is the fifth time Jay has applied for relief and been granted it.

Column: This is my wintertime hunting addiction

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • February 7, 2024

For years, I’ve hopelessly suffered from the acute seasonal effects of an ongoing addiction to shed antlers. I still haven’t been able to nail down exactly what it is about finding a shed deer antler that calls to me so loudly. After all, of the dozens I’ve found over the years, only a very few have ever served any decorative or functional purpose. I don’t care if it’s big, small, old, new, bleached, brown, chewed or perfect: I have to have it. ~ Chris Sargent

Embattled dairy farmers ask Maine lawmakers to approve higher milk prices

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • February 7, 2024

Dozens of Maine dairy farmers packed a legislative hearing Wednesday to call for lawmakers to approve higher milk prices set under a state relief program. The boosted price levels are sorely needed, particularly after higher inflation during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to farmers. That came amid historic struggles in Maine’s dairy industry, which has dwindled from 4,600 farms in 1954 to less than 150 now on the heels of major closures over the past few years.

Plans in the works to expand Augusta’s Howard Hill to universal access

KENNEBEC JOURNAL • February 7, 2024

After years of discussions, officials in Hallowell, Augusta and the Kennebec Land Trust are working to make the conservation and recreation area just west of the state capital complex more widely accessible to people with disabilities. Spanning 164 acres, Howard Hill offers forested open space with a stream and a ridgeline with cliffs, bordered by developed areas in Augusta and Hallowell. Residents often walk the network of old carriage roads through the hill to experience the scenic view of the Kennebec River or the State House building nestled amid an expansive shade of green. Enock Glidden, who lives in Bethel, is one of the many who is keeping an eye on the development. Glidden, now 45, was 4 when he got his first wheelchair. He has taken up wheelchair racing, skiing and rock climbing.

Editorial: Mining near Baxter State Park isn’t appropriate

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • February 7, 2024

The staff of the Land Use Planning Commission has recommended in a draft document rejecting a rezoning request that would open the door to a mining plan at Pickett Mountain. To protect the region’s waterways and its burgeoning tourism economy, this is the right decision. Commissioners are scheduled to meet next week to vote on a rezoning application from Wolfden Resources Corp., a Canadian mining company that wants the zoning change to allow a metallic mine at Pickett Mountain, which is near Baxter State Park and Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument. This is the wrong project in the wrong place, and this rezoning request should be denied.

Maine, 8 other states sign agreement to boost production of heat pumps

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • February 7, 2024

In the latest push to expand heat pump use, officials of nine Northeast states, including Maine, announced Wednesday they will increase their installation targets to further reduce greenhouse gas emissions from buildings. Environmental officials in California, Colorado, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon and Rhode Island have signed an agreement to meet at least 65% of residential-scale heating, air conditioning and water heating shipments by 2030 and 90% by 2040. The states will collaborate to collect market data, track progress and develop a plan within a year to support electrification of residential buildings.

Opinion: Maine’s cannabis industry can boost agriculture, ease food insecurity

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • February 7, 2024

Last year, Maine’s medical cannabis market brought in more than $305 million, while recreational sales hit $200 million. But there is much more to cannabis than “getting high” or “serving potheads.” Traditional agriculture is in peril. Among other factors, climate change has heightened the unpredictability of outdoor farming. Consumers are increasingly concerned about pesticide use, with much of our fruit and produce coming from countries with questionable certifications and credentials. The cannabis industry has pioneered controlled environment agriculture farming, one of our most important potential solutions to the agriculture problem. Mainers can thank the cannabis industry for revolutionizing farming. ~ Dan Thayer, Lifespring Microclimates

Unity Environmental University donates $1M building to charter school

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • February 6, 2024

Unity Environmental University has donated one of the buildings on its original campus in Unity to a local charter school known as the Ecology Learning Center. The decision comes as the university is attempting to sell most of its Unity campus after making a few big changes during the COVID pandemic, including moving its headquarters to a campus in the southern Maine town of New Gloucester and shifting to a hybrid model with many classes offered remotely. The rest of the university campus is likely to remain for sale.

Opinion: What we don’t know about PFAS can, in fact, hurt us

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • February 6, 2024

So far, Maine’s reporting system has yielded valuable information on PFAS in cosmetics, cleaners, cookware, home appliances, pesticides, paper products, apparel and industrial products. But some in industry seek to repeal this PFAS reporting requirement, which would be an extreme rollback of Maine’s efforts to prevent future PFAS pollution and protect Mainers. Mainers have a right to know which hazardous chemicals are used by industry or added to consumer and commercial products. Protecting our drinking water, food supply and bodies from future PFAS pollution is worth the extra paperwork. The Maine Legislature should stand firm in defense of Maine’s PFAS reporting law, which is working and should be protected. ~ Gail Carlson, Buck Lab for Climate and Environment at Colby College

New bill could incentivize Maine utilities to invest in reliability and meeting climate goals

MAINE PUBLIC • February 6, 2024

A new measure would direct the PUC to create a framework to enhance the state's standards for utilities, which could be connected to goals such as cost-effectiveness and meeting the state's climate policies. The commission could then look at ways to tie utilities' performance in those standards in the rate-setting process. The approach, called "performance-based" ratemaking, received support from several of Maine's environmental advocacy groups. Advocates say 17 states have adopted some form of performance-based regulation. But Central Maine Power said that the company was already working on issues such as climate change. James Cote, speaking for Versant Power, said that if metrics aren't applied correctly, it could lead to utilities underinvesting in certain areas, and overinvesting in others.

Gov. Mills: ‘Please take advantage of help’ from FEMA storm recovery centers

MORNING SENTINEL • February 6, 2024

Mainers in five counties looking for federal funds to assist their recovery efforts after December’s historic storm can seek help at Federal Emergency Management Agency centers in each of those counties opening this week. Gov. Janet Mills, along with federal, state and county emergency management officials, marked the opening of the Disaster Recovery Center for Somerset County in Skowhegan on Tuesday. They urged anyone affected by the storm to apply for assistance.

Maine Calling: Wild Atlantic Salmon

MAINE PUBLIC • February 6, 2024

Atlantic salmon were once prevalent in the eastern United States, but now Maine is home to the last remaining wild Atlantic salmon in the country. Learn about the challenges facing this endangered species, and what is being done to protect and restore these fish in Maine waters. Panelists: John Burrows, Atlantic Salmon Federation; Danielle Frechette, Maine Department of Marine Resources. VIP Callers: Sharri Venno, environmental planner, Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians; Don Sprangers, Downeast Salmon Federation; Josh Royte, The Nature Conservancy in Maine.

Opinion: Now is the time for a down payment on our coastal communities

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • February 6, 2024

January’s back-to-back coastal storms eroded our coastlines, destroyed family homes and wharves, and swept years of hopes and dreams out to sea. We need to imagine a different future coast, one where our infrastructure, businesses and homes can withstand storms like these and the forces of climate change. Gov. Janet Mills recently announced two important investments that can help us build back higher, stronger and greener. The first is an additional $5 million for the state’s Community Resilience Partnership (CRP) which will allow 100 communities from across all Maine to receive $50,000 each in grants to implement community priorities developed through a climate resilience planning process. Gov. Mills called for another $50 million for the climate change adaptation fund that will provide critical infrastructure across the state – both coast and inland – that can better withstand a changing climate. ~ Nick Battista, Island Institute