Column: Arctic charr reclamation at Big Wadleigh Pond

SUN JOURNAL • March 2, 2024

Maine is the only state in the lower 48 that still has the Arctic charr. The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife took “extraordinary steps” to preserve, not just the charr, but also the wild brook trout in Big Wadleigh Pond. In 2012, 100 charr and 300 native brook trout were captured and moved to Mountain Springs Trout Farm in Frenchville. Once bucket-stocked rainbow smelts were eliminated from Big Wadleigh Pond and the captured species were successfully raised and spawned by the Frenchville hatchery, they were systematically restocked back into the reclaimed pond. ~ V. Paul Reynolds

Letter: Use Mack Point for offshore wind port

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • March 1, 2024

I support the development of an offshore wind facility at Mack Point, and oppose development of that facility on Sears Island, if any such facility is to be built in Penobscot Bay. Sears Island, or Wassumkeag, is a treasure and has been revered for more than 3,000 years. The choice is clear: to redevelop Mack Point, an active port and industrial site for more than 100 years, into the hub for manufacturing renewable energy from floating offshore wind turbines; or to potentially destroy the ecological, recreational and economic value of Sears Island, the largest undeveloped island on the Maine coast connected by a causeway. ~ Nicholas Kranz, Searsport

Hampden gravel pit transformed into community solar farm

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • March 1, 2024

An abandoned gravel pit in Hampden has been repurposed as a 14,000-panel community solar farm. Investor and owner Wishcamper Cos. on Thursday cut the ribbon on the project which will generate an estimated 8.6 million kilowatt hours of electricity. The electricity from the solar farm will power the Bangor Water District, the College of the Atlantic and other local institutions.

Central Maine Power asks regulators for $162 million reimbursement for storm repairs

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • March 1, 2024

Central Maine Power Co. asked state regulators Friday to authorize a $162 million reimbursement – a near-record – for the costs of restoring power after three destructive storms last year. The money would be paid by ratepayers over two years. Regulators will decide “approximately” in April how much the utility may charge customers and will set a payment schedule and allocate rates for residential and business customers.

Peregrine falcons are nesting at Acadia National Park

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • March 1, 2024

It’s peregrine falcon nesting season in Maine. That means that select areas of Acadia National Park will be closed to the public so as not to disturb the mating pairs. The Jordan Cliffs Trail, Precipice Trail and Valley Cove Trail will be closed until further notice, according to park officials. Peregrine falcons start finding mates and settling into nests in March and early April, and throughout April and May, incubate their eggs. Peregrine chicks hatch in June, and by July the chicks become fledglings and start stretching their wings. By the fall, the chicks have matured. Some will choose to migrate further south, but peregrine falcons can be found along Maine’s coast in the winter months, depending on resources and how severe winter weather gets.

Maine lobster harvest sees $72 million rebound in 2023, even as landings decline

MAINE PUBLIC • March 1, 2024

Maine fishermen brought in about $464 million worth of lobster last year, a $72 million increase over the previous year’s haul, which had been the lowest in the decade. The rebound was mostly driven by higher lobster prices. By volume, fishermen harvested nearly 94 million pounds of lobster, the lowest in 15 years.

Letter: Regulators made the right call about Wolfden

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • March 1, 2024

Thank you to our Land Use Planning Commission for its recent decision regarding Wolfden Resources and the proposed Pickett Mountain mine. When industry seems to be winning over nature more and more, I figured it might go through even though the proposed location was just awful for so many reasons. In the end, the commission agreed with many Mainers and Indigenous people that this was a special area, and its status as a protection district should not be changed. ~ Kara Potter, Mount Chase

Maine fishermen hauled more than $611M to the dock last year

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • March 1, 2024

Maine fishermen earned an additional $25 million dockside in 2023. The total value of Maine’s fisheries came to $611,277,692, according to preliminary figures for 2023 the Maine Department of Marine Resources released Friday morning. That’s a boost compared with 2022’s $574,049,682, but a far cry from the record more than $890 million hauled in throughout 2021. The increase over the value of 2022’s catch was attributed to strong prices for Maine lobster, which remains the state’s most valuable fishery.

Judge suspends enforcement of new Maine law barring foreign spending on referendum elections

MAINE PUBLIC • March 1, 2024

A federal judge has halted enforcement of a voter-approved law designed to bar foreign government-owned entities from spending money to influence Maine referendums. The 40-page decision by U.S. District Judge Nancy Torresen is not the final ruling, but suggests that she views significant portions of the law — backed by 86% of Maine voters in November — could include domestically held corporations and, as a result, are unconstitutional. The law is the result of a citizen's initiative last year in response to record spending on a 2021 ballot campaign aimed at halting Central Maine Power's transmission corridor through western Maine. The effort originally targeted a multimillion-dollar electioneering effort by Hydro-Quebec, which is wholly owned by the government of Quebec. But its list of opponents grew to include CMP and Versant Power, a subsidiary of ENMAX which is owned by the government of Calgary, Alberta.

Man missing on Moosehead had wandered 5 miles before being found safe

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • March 1, 2024

A 25-year-old Fairfield man, Colby Davis, reported missing during a snowsquall on Moosehead Lake has been found safe approximately five miles from where he was separated from his friend. Davis apparently became disoriented when he was separated from his friend and drove his snowmobile on the lake until he got it stuck on a pressure ridge. He then walked until he found an occupied camp approximately five miles from where the two were separated. Because there was no cell phone reception at the camp, the owner drove a snowmobile to where he could get a call out to wardens this morning. While looking for Davis Thursday, the wardens had to help a person whose ATV went through the ice in the same area.

Opinion: Climate change makes protecting reproductive rights a top priority

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • March 1, 2024

As Women’s History Month begins, get on the right side of history and support L.D. 780 to codify reproductive autonomy for all Mainers in state law. When the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, reproductive rights were limited across the U.S. Since the ruling, abortion has been banned or more restricted by 21 states. Since the Supreme Court ruling, Maine has enacted legislation to protect reproductive rights. Despite this, reproductive justice will continue to be vulnerable in Maine if not constitutionally protected. Reproductive and environmental justice go hand in hand, in the promotion of healthy human life today and for future generations. Extreme heat and air pollution, intensified by climate change, has been linked to poorer maternal health, higher rates of premature birth, low birth weight and stillbirths. Without codifying reproductive rights as human rights, climate change will make an already difficult reproductive issue much worse. ~ Jane Olsen, Brunswick, Bowdoin College senior

Column: I just can’t seem to get it right this week

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • March 1, 2024

It’s been a week of errors. On Monday night, I drove to Brunswick for a presentation to the Merrymeeting Chapter of Maine Audubon. The projector failed. I’m presenting a program on how to identify birds faster and easier for the Penobscot Valley Chapter of Maine Audubon at Fields Pond Audubon Center at 7 p.m., March 1. I promptly posted the wrong web address. The largest wintering flock of harlequin ducks on the East Coast gathers annually at the south end of Isle au Haut. For years, the Isle au Haut ferry made a special trip to see them. COVID-19 put a temporary end to the event, but we decided to resurrect it this year. I was concerned that we might not get enough people. The first trip filled as soon as reservations became available. We scheduled a second trip. That filled immediately. We added a third. That sold out. That was my week. How was yours? ~ Bob Duchesne

A rare white leucistic crow was spotted in Bangor

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • February 29, 2024

Bangor resident Hillary Gocze was on her typical walk through Mount Hope Cemetery on Tuesday when she spotted a highly unusual bird in the trees — a big departure from the typical crows and Canada geese she sees while visiting Bangor’s historic garden cemetery. Hanging out among the flock of crows was an almost entirely white crow, a rare leucistic variation on the bird’s uniform glossy black feathers. Only the crow’s head was black; the rest was snowy white.

Proposed Gorham Connector would impact 35 landowners in Scarborough

FORECASTER • February 29, 2024

Out of the approximately 50 landowners who would be impacted by the proposed Gorham Connector, 35 are in Scarborough, the Maine Turnpike Authority told the Scarborough Town Council. The turnpike authority has secured the rights to one-third of the Scarborough properties and another third are in negotiations. The remaining properties would involve small easements, such as taking slivers of front lawns or backyards. The estimated cost of the more than $200 million would be paid through connector tolls. Construction could begin in 2026 with completion by 2030.

Bar Harbor can place a daily limit on cruise ship passengers, federal judge rules

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • February 29, 2024

The town of Bar Harbor can continue to limit the number of cruise ship passengers allowed to come ashore there on a single day, a federal judge ruled Thursday. Bar Harbor voters passed a referendum in 2022barring more than 1,000 cruise ship passengers a day from disembarking in town over concerns about tourists impacting the quality of life for residents. But a group of local business owners sued the town, arguing the visitation cap rendered the town “an unviable destination port-of-call” that was unconstitutional and would hurt the local economy. U.S. District Judge Lance Walker ruled that Bar Harbor had home rule authority granted by the state, which allows cities and towns to pass and enforce local rules that don’t violate state law or the U.S. Constitution.

Proposed lithium mine in western Maine clears key hurdle

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • February 29, 2024

The Board of Environmental Protection has unanimously agreed to amend Maine’s strict mining rules to allow for open-pit excavation of certain metals, including those fueling the country’s transition to clean energy, as long as the extraction will not pollute the environment. The provisional amendment – the result of a state law adopted last July intended to overhaul the mining law to allow for the extraction of non-reactive minerals like spodumene, the hard rock source of lithium – now heads back to the Legislature for final consideration.

Coalition calls for $30 million bond to support Maine trails

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • February 29, 2024

A broad coalition of businesses, municipalities and recreation organizations called on the Maine Legislature Thursday to support a $30 million bond to raise money for the state’s trails. Investing in trails is a key strategy for boosting Maine’s outdoor recreation economy, which supports 31,000 jobs. The coalition includes 43 statewide organizations, 192 local organizations, 75 cities and towns, 167 businesses, and 41 ATV and snowmobile clubs.

Coalition of outdoor groups, businesses and towns call for $30M bond to repair, expand Maine trails

MAINE PUBLIC • February 29, 2024

A coalition of than 500 outdoor organizations, businesses and municipalities is calling on Maine lawmakers to send a $30 million bond to voters this Fall. The funds would be managed by the Bureau of Parks and Lands and dispersed over four years to organizations and towns for motorized, non-motorized and multi-use trail projects. Supporters say the money is urgently needed after recent storms and floods caused severe trail damage around the state.

Editorial: Canceled winter events are another climate change warning

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • February 29, 2024

Numerous outdoor events — notably Aroostook County’s Can-Am dog sled races — have been canceled this winter because of changing and unpredictable weather conditions. Unprecedented warming globally is primarily being driven by climate change, exacerbated by El Nino. A charitable snowmobile run in Piscataquis County, scheduled for March 2, was also canceled. And the snowmobile season in Aroostook County could be cut short this winter. Maine’s changing winters are making it harder for residents and tourists to enjoy outdoor activities, such as snowmobiling, ice fishing and skiing. Maine’s changing winter is another example of the impacts of climate change and a reminder that we have to take action now to preserve the outdoor activities that draw Mainers outdoors and draw visitors to Maine.

Column: Federal renewable energy tax credits

TIMES RECORD • February 29, 2024

If you have been considering reducing your energy costs, and your carbon footprint, at home by shifting to renewable sources of heating, cooling and electricity, federal tax credits make this less expensive. ~ Nancy B. Chandler