Sears Island picked as the site of Maine’s new offshore wind port

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • February 20, 2024

Sears Island in Searsport will serve as the staging ground for Maine’s new offshore wind port, Gov. Janet Mills announced Tuesday. The decision to use about 100 acres of the 941-acre island after years of planning and public feedback was not surprising. While it is only an initial part of Maine’s broader plan to unlock the potential of offshore wind, the preference for Sears Island has received criticism from some conservationists and an alliance of conservatives and progressives. They argue the port will damage the wildlife, hiking and birding opportunities that draw visitors to the largest undeveloped island in Penobscot Bay.

Letter: Electric school buses are basically powered by fossil fuels, too

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • February 20, 2024

Electric vehicles are essentially powered by fossil fuel. In the past 20 years solar and wind contributions to total energy use are quite modest, especially for more urban states. By and large over the last 20 years, solar and wind increases have not decreased fossil fuel use, but rather have decreased the increase in total fossil fuel use. We need to very rapidly decrease all fossil fuels with the goal to totally eliminate that use as soon as possible. The only solution that I see that can realistically decrease fossil fuel fast enough is nuclear power ~ Kevin McCartney, Retired geology professor, Caribou

Snowmobile partly goes through ice on Lake St. George

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • February 20, 2024

A man was riding a snowmobile on Lake St. George in Liberty late Monday afternoon when the vehicle partially broke through the ice. The man didn’t go into the water, and firefighters were eventually able to remove the snowmobile using ropes attached to a tree on a nearby island.

A new report says more investment in New England's grid is needed for a clean energy future

MAINE PUBLIC • February 20, 2024

A new report says that the region will need to make substantial investment in its electrical grid, as Maine and New England embrace wind, solar and technologies such as EV's and heat pumps. The study, from grid operator ISO New England, concludes that New England may need to invest close to $1 billion in in its electric transmission infrastructure each year, through 2050, in order to handle the increased electrical demands. Maine has set a goal to move to 100% renewable energy by 2050.

Warmer winters could push pine-tree killing beetles deeper into Maine

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • February 20, 2024

January’s record high average temperature throughout Maine foreshadows a threat from a new pest that could attack the iconic trees spanning Maine’s southern coast to the mountaintops of Acadia National Park. Found in 2021 by a University of New Hampshire researcher in York County, southern pine beetles — each about half the size of a grain of rice — can marshall into swarms that attack and tunnel through pitch pines.

Game wardens seize rare silver fox after he was reunited with owner

LINCOLN COUNTY NEWS • February  19, 2024

On Wednesday, at approximately 4:30 p.m., Maine game wardens confiscated a silver fox from the Waldoboro residence of Danielle Katherina Brann. Brann was issued “a summons for unlawful possession of wildlife without a permit” at the time that the fox was seized.

Hiker rescued from mountain with 90-mph winds, bitter cold atop Mount Washington

ASSOCIATED PRESS • February 19, 2024

It took more than 10 hours to save a hiker in conditions that included sustained winds topping 90 mph on New Hampshire’s Mount Washington. Officials say the hiker from Portsmouth, New Hampshire, didn't have appropriate gear for the dangerous winter conditions.

Opinion: Already, 2024 is a terrible year for endangered right whales

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • February 19, 2024

2024 is off to a terrible start for critically endangered North Atlantic right whales. Last week, a 1-year-old female was found dead off the coast of Georgia after likely being struck and killed by a speeding boat. In January, a 3-year old female washed up on Martha’s Vineyard entangled in fishing rope, which likely led to her death. With barely 350 North Atlantic right whales, every death is a tragedy and brings this species one step closer to extinction. What’s worse is that scientists estimate that fewer than 70 reproductively viable females remain. There is reason for hope, however. New solutions like ropeless gear have the potential to reduce the risk of entanglement. Common-sense measures like speed limits in areas when and where right whales are known to transit, feed or congregate could make a huge difference. Federal officials must ensure that sufficient funding is available for ropeless fishing. ~ Erica Fuller,Conservation Law Foundation

KELT to host energy-efficiency lecture Feb. 22

TIMES RECORD • February 19, 2024

Kennebec Estuary Land Trust is hosting a free Zoom lecture at 6 p.m., Feb. 22, about resources that can help to save energy and save on the cost of heating and electric. Sam Saltonstall, a local volunteer who has led projects that have increased energy efficiency in many Maine homes, is the presenter for this program. The program will outline the range of new tax rebates and credits available now to help shrink energy bills while keeping homes warm and comfortable and increasing affordability of electric vehicles. FMI: kennebecestuary.org/upcoming-events or call 442-8400.

More young moose will likely survive this Maine winter

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • February 19, 2024

Winter ticks that plague juvenile moose are at one of the lowest levels researchers have seen in 11 years. It’s the second year in a row that the tick counts on moose have been relatively low. Animals with a high tick load can lose from 25-30 percent of their body weight during the winter months, because they spend their time scratching, trying to get rid of the biting beasts. The moose use energy rather than conserve it in the cold months, jeopardizing their overall health. Lee Kantar, Maine’s moose biologist, expects the moose population to increase, though the higher population of moose means more winter ticks. In 2023, 3,555 regular season permittees killed 2,279 moose. Adding in the adaptive hunt, the totals were 4,105 permittees who killed 2,440 moose, making the success 59 percent overall.

The stink is gone, but contamination questions plague Maine town

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • February 19, 2024

Soil Preparation Inc., a private Plymouth-based company, was bringing in out-of-state sludge and local waste to process into farmland fertilizer. In addition to spraying wastewater onto its property, the company also spread sludge on some 200 farm fields across Maine. Testing has shown it contained harmful chemicals and heavy metals in addition to organic nutrients. Today the plant is no longer accepting sludge. But residents of the small town of 1,300 people are left wondering about the possible contamination of the soil, wells and waterways, and frustrated that the state has not done more to investigate. They believe the town’s environment will suffer in the long run.

Why there are no dinosaur fossils in Maine

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • February 19, 2024

There aren’t any dinosaur fossils and almost no giant mammal fossils to be found in Maine. In fact, there aren’t any fossils to be found in Maine at all, dating from a period of about 360 million years ago until around 1 million years ago. Why? Almost all the fossils were scoured away by glaciers. Prior to that, Maine was subject to near-constant erosion for hundreds of millions of years. The “newer” fossils found in Maine tend to date from the last 12,000 years. They largely consist of shells of marine invertebrates, though a handful of whale, seal and walrus fossils have also been found — as well as a  wooly mammoth tooth found off the coast of Scarborough in 1959, and a mastodon tusk found off of Cushing in 2006. There probably were dinosaurs roaming what is now Maine, but all the evidence was scoured away by the slow march of geologic time.

Letter: Misguided economic policies

DAILY BULLDOG • February 19, 2024

Regarding the recent $4 million grant issued by Janet T. Mills to Kingfish Maine, is our governor really supporting yet another foreign company to siphon profits from Mainers? This grant reflects a fundamental problem with Maine’s economic development ‘strategy’. Kingfish Zeeland, located in the Netherlands, is the financially-troubled parent company being supported by Maine’s leaders to invade Downeast Maine. The proposed site in Jonesport will ‘recirculate’ 28 million gallons of Chandler Bay water per day, adding a one-ton splash of nitrogen and phosphorous per day along with an occasional dab of formalin. And this industrial complex will extract 43,200 gallons of fresh water per day from the aquifer. I am at a loss to understand the logic of this grant. ~ Richard Aishton, Steuben

Maine Forest Service offers $1 million in grants to expand urban tree canopy

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • February 18, 2024

The Maine Forest Service is offering $1 million in grants for projects that will help establish sustainable urban woodlands, increase awareness of the benefits of trees and enhance community health and livability. Funded through the federal Inflation Reduction Act, the service is offering $250,000 in Project Canopy grants and $750,000 in federal Urban and Community Forestry Program grants, according to the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry. Application deadline is May 15, 11:59 p.m.

Brunswick planning officials propose pause on fast-tracking major developments

TIMES RECORD • February 18, 2024

Brunswick planning officials have recommended the town pause fast-tracking large development projects amid a flurry of activity. Currently, developers of large projects in growth zones can apply to have their plans approved in a streamlined review process, a mechanism that was rarely used until late last year. Now, seven such projects have been approved, overwhelming staff and increasing the possibility of regulations being overlooked, according to planning officials.

State urges Winthrop, other school districts to take electric buses off the road due to defects

KENNEBEC JOURNAL • February 18, 2024

Electric school buses from Lion Electric Co. arrived with problems, reports say, and the Maine Department of Education is advising school districts take the buses off the road until the state can inspect them.  Inspection reports from the Maine Department of Public Safety, which routinely inspects school buses, indicate the buses in Winthrop and Vinalhaven show the kind of wear that’s consistent with older buses with higher mileage, not new buses that have yet to be driven 1,000 miles.

Letter: Focus on getting energy supply prices under control

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • February 18, 2024

I’m concerned about LD 2172, new legislation calling for the Maine Public Utilities Commission to use “performance based metrics and rate adjustment mechanisms.” To me, this disrupts a process to make utilities more accountable that began last legislative session and is barely underway. The PUC would also need to reconsider how the utilities are advancing the state’s climate goals at a time when so much of this work is already being done. The supply price of electricity is through the roof. Legislators should focus on how to get those costs under control. ~ Scott McIntire, Alna

Trump BLM chief: Let’s do away with Antiquities Act

E&E NEWS • February 6, 2024

A former Trump administration Interior Department official says the next Republican president should slash the footprint of national monuments from Maine to California, and press to bar future presidents from wielding executive power to protect federal lands. That proposal from William Perry Pendley — who led former President Donald Trump’s Bureau of Land Management despite never being confirmed to the post— could end up tested in the courts perhaps even before the next president takes office. “This is a full scale assault on America’s national monuments and all of our common natural heritage,” said Taylor McKinnon, with the Center Action Fund.

Letter: Maine should adopt clean car standards

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • February 18, 2024

It is time for Maine to step up and adopt stronger clean cars standards. We’ve always had strong emission standards, and we can’t afford to shy away from the EV transition while other states are moving forward. My family’s vehicles are fully electric. My wife commutes 25 miles each way to and from work and I drive in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and New York state for work. We have been able to get everywhere we need to go while saving money on fuel and maintenance costs. Charging at home is easy, and with no oil changes or engine problems. ~ Stefan Bergill, Woolwich

Column: Where is the Steller’s sea eagle?

MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • February 18, 2024

We are passing through the time of the year when, in the last two years, the greater birding world was all aflutter because a Steller’s sea eagle was seen in Georgetown. Many people have been asking us this winter, and increasingly so as we pass through the anniversary of its sightings: Do we think it will come back, or where exactly it is now. We can assume the largest factor that determines where it decides to go is food availability. ~ Maine Audubon Staff Naturalist Doug Hitchcox