New commission aims to steel Maine against worsening storms

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 21, 2024

When state officials created a climate council in 2019, it was to investigate how global warming was affecting Maine and what could be done to lessen those impacts. Much of the council’s work has focused on Maine’s energy and transportation needs, promoting a reduction in the use of the fossil fuels that are accelerating climate change. But over the past two years, and in particular this past winter, the impact of climate-driven storms has become much clearer. Since December, storms have flooded significant portions of inland Maine and wreaked havoc along the coast, destroying docks, damaging homes and wiping out protective sand dunes. That urgency is why Gov. Janet Mills created a new entity on Tuesday specifically to look into how to make infrastructure less vulnerable to storms, which are getting stronger as a result of climate change.

Governor creates new commission to study storm resiliency

MAINE PUBLIC • May 21, 2024

Gov. Janet Mills signed an executive order today to create a new commission on preparing for and responding to severe storms. Just this month Mills requested a federal disaster declaration for the January storms that devastated much of the coast, the eighth such request Mills has sought in the last two years. Mills said the state cannot keep enduring storms and rebuilding, and that infrastructure needs to be made more resilient. "Look, now is the time for us to take bold and urgent steps to protect the Maine that we all know and love and cherish, protect it for our children and grandchildren," Mills said.

Acadia National Park Confronts a Rising Tide

SIERRA CLUB • May 21, 2024

In January, a one-two punch of winter storms walloped coastal Maine and destroyed infrastructure across Acadia National Park that rangers are still repairing as they gear up for the millions of tourists who visit every summer. The temporary sea level rise brought on by the January storms offered a peek into what could be a new normal by mid-century, forcing officials at Acadia to confront the reality that restoring the current damage will require a much more rigorous process than merely rebuilding roads and trails, many of which were established over a century ago. It's a situation that illustrates the inherent tension between the two missions of the National Park Service writ large: conservation and tourism.

Gov. Mills to create commission to prepare Maine for more battering storms

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 20, 2024

Gov. Janet Mills is creating a commission to help Maine rebuild from a string of winter storms that caused an estimated $90 million in damage and to develop a long-term infrastructure resilience plan to prepare for more climate-driven disasters in the future. “The time is now for immediate steps to strengthen (our) ability to better withstand the impacts of a changing climate,” Mills said. Eleven disasters have been declared since Mills took office in January 2019. Eight of those have been declared in the last two years, an unprecedented number in Maine history. According to a 2021 report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the increase in greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane in our atmosphere caused by the burning of fossil fuels has increased the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events.

Living with contaminated water in a small Maine town

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 21, 2024

Lawrence Higgins and his wife, Penelope Higgins, both 70, received their test results showing extremely high levels of two well-studied PFAS compounds, PFOA, or perfluorooctanoic acid, and PFOS, or perfluorooctanesulfonic acid. Their neighborhood and several other areas of Fairfield have some of the highest PFAS levels in the country, according to engineers studying PFAS. Contamination from the so-called forever chemicals, which take a long time to degrade in the environment, is widespread in the state, with other notable levels concentrated in Skowhegan and Unity, putting pressure on Maine lawmakers and regulators to eliminate or contain its effects.

Students at Mexico school celebrate World Bee Day

RUMFORD FALLS TIMES • May 20, 2024

Meroby Elementary School students celebrated World Bee Day on Monday at the Mountain Valley Middle School apiary center, where they participated in bee-related activities. World Bee Day is meant to “raise awareness on the essential role bees and other pollinators play in keeping people and the planet healthy, and on the many challenges they face today.” The Mountain Valley Bees Academy apiary in Mexico was created from a $100,000 Maine Department of education grant in 2022.

Persistent ospreys rebuild on Bath utility pole after eviction by CMP

TIMES RECORD • May 20, 2024

A persistent pair of ospreys have created a new, if unimpressive, nest atop a utility pole along Route 1 in Bath, despite Central Maine Power’s efforts to get the birds to relocate. The raptors have assembled a small nest between yellow pylons installed by CMP to deter them from rebuilding on the pole after crews removed an existing nest just before the ospreys arrived this spring. CMP has said the nest was destroyed because it posed a risk of causing power outages. Joanne Adams, an osprey photographer, said, “The nest that’s there now that [the ospreys] have built hangs on both sides, and if CMP were looking to not have a power outage that nest is the most dangerous nest I have ever seen in my life.”

Federal regulators to hold hearings on Kennebec dams

MAINE PUBLIC • May 20, 2024

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission will hold two public hearings this week on the relicensing of four dams along the Kennebec River: the Lockwood Dam and Hydro Kennebec Dam in Waterville, Shawmut Dam in Fairfield and the Weston Dam in Skowhegan. In March, a draft environmental impact statement from agency staff recommended the relicensing, with conditions for turbine shutdowns and new fish lifts, to protect migrating fish species. But Nick Bennett with the Natural Resources Council of Maine said the proposals do not do enough to protect fish.

Lawrence High School students release salmon fry into the Sandy River in Farmington

SUN JOURNAL • May 20, 2024

Peter Kallin, interim chief executive officer of 7 Lakes Alliance in the Belgrade Lakes area, gave students in Eric Brown's ecology and biology classes a lesson in the cycle stages of salmon on Monday. Some of the 200 salmon still had egg sacks attached, but most were in the fry stage when they are five to 10 weeks old and can swim and eat macroinvertebrates.

Public hearings on Kennebec River dam relicensing set for this week in Waterville, Augusta

MORNING SENTINEL • May 20, 2024

Members of the public will have opportunity this week to ask questions and comment on the relicensing of four dams on the Kennebec River, between Waterville and Skowhegan, at public hearings scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday. The hearings, part of the federal regulatory process, are to be held in Waterville on Tuesday and in Augusta on Wednesday. The public can also comment online until June 4 at ferc.gov/how-file-comment. The four dams are owned by Brookfield Renewable Partners, which filed plans with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission it says will protect threatened or endangered Atlantic salmon, Atlantic sturgeon and shortnose sturgeon. The Natural Resources Council of Maine says the plans contain inadequate measures to protect wildlife.

8 Maine communities will share $22 million in federal cleanup grants

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 20, 2024

Maine will receive $33 million from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to assess and clean up sites that have been polluted or contaminated by industrial use. The money is part of the Biden administration’s initiative to transform once-polluted and now abandoned properties into community assets. Eight communities in Maine will share $22 million in grants through the EPA’s Multipurpose, Assessment and Cleanup program that targets so-called brownfield sites that cannot be redeveloped because of contamination. Another $11 million will be distributed to four already existing programs in Maine that support brownfield cleanup.

Letter: Restoring Megunticook River would be good for Camden and watershed

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 20, 2024

In her May 14 letter in the Bangor Daily News about the Megunticook River, Jo Ann Simon decries the potential destruction of a man-made dam as part of the restoration of the river. She states that “there is no demonstrated history of the Megunticook ever being a river used by migratory fish because of the granite ledge at its foot inhibiting the passage of fish,” and her letter links to a feasibility report. The study actually says the opposite of what she claims. The report cited indicates that the river was diverted from its historic path — now buried beneath parts of Harbor Park. The report points out “the natural channel would have flowed down the more gently sloped approaches to the harbor that surround the bed rock outcrop.” It continues: “there are lines of evidence which suggest that the river conditions supported sea‐run fish.” ~ John Morrison, Hope

In wake of damaging storms, Bath oyster farmer still seeking recovery help

TIMES RECORD • May 20, 2024

Sadia Crosby is still looking for a way to repair damage to her family’s wharf months after devastating January storms. Crosby owns Oysthers Sea Farm in Georgetown and Oysthers Raw Bar & Bubbly on the Bath riverfront with her sister and business partner, Lauren Crosby. After the January storms cleared, there was significant damage to Crosby’s wharf, rendering it useless. She applied for FEMA assistance but was denied because the grant wouldn’t cover damage to structures over the water like wharfs. She doesn’t qualify for the recent $25 million in funding from the Working Waterfront Resilience Grant Program because she doesn’t have 10 or more people working at her wharf. Business Resilience Storm Response Grants totaling $250,000 were applied to 52 other waterfront businesses. Crosby wasn’t able to get any funding. Her flood insurance does not cover her wharf either.

York voters reject regulations for short-term rentals

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 20, 2024

York residents on Saturday narrowly rejected a proposal to regulate short-term rentals. The proposed ordinance would have for the first time required the owners of all short-term rentals — including those listed through online platforms like Airbnb and VRBO — to register with the town and undergo safety inspections. It also would have put limits on occupancy and require properties to have off-street parking. The vote was 2,029 to 1,788 against the proposal.

York becomes first Maine town to ban single-use plastic utensils

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 20, 2024

York has become the first town in Maine to ban single-use plastic utensils, straws and stir sticks. Voters on Saturday approved the new restrictions in a 2,192 to 1,556 vote. The ordinance prohibits plastic straws, stir sticks and utensils at stores, restaurants, coffee shops, caterers, cafeterias, food delivery services and at town-sponsored events. Health care facilities are exempt but are encouraged to comply. The regulations will go into effect in May 2025.

A first in northernmost Maine: Utility ran on 100% solar power for a few hours in early May

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 20, 2024

Solar energy provided all the electricity needed to power a service area of more than 11,000 customers in northern Maine for a few hours in early May, marking a first in the large, sparsely populated region that relies on a Canadian grid for its electricity. Unlike other regions in the state that are linked to the New England electricity grid, the Fort Kent area in northernmost Maine is connected to New Brunswick Power Corp. Versant Power, the region’s transmission and distribution utility, said that since 2020, it has worked with developers to connect more than 140 megawatts of solar energy to the grid.

As ‘glamping’ becomes more popular, Sanford may hit pause on new campgrounds

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 20, 2024

The City Council is considering a moratorium to give the city time to ensure its rules for campgrounds reflect modern camping. But the pause is putting one couple's plans to open a 'glampground' along Sand Pond at risk. Proposals for new “glampgrounds” often generate controversy and concerns from residents about safety, noise and traffic. Municipal officials have also had to grapple with whether these resorts should fall under the same category as traditional campgrounds. And residents in several other Maine towns have risen up to oppose similar projects.

Camden Snow Bowl prepares for a less snowy future

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 20, 2024

The Camden Snow Bowl has faced a number of issues in recent years, including deteriorating buildings, aging equipment that’s needed to be replaced and Underlying all of those challenges, though, is a more existential one for the town-owned Snow Bowl on Ragged Mountain. Winters are getting warmer in Maine, and during recent seasons that has left the little ski area with a shortage of its most essential component. That was painfully evident this winter, when warm, wet weather rapidly melted its snow and forced it to close for the season in early March, almost a month before it normally would.

Maine’s trail system is still a mess from storm devastation as ATV season opens

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 20, 2024

A new $60,000 bridge on an ATV trail near Strong was destroyed, and needs to be rebuilt. A trail washout in Bemis that left a 40-foot hole will cost $160,000 to fix. And it will cost more than $1 million to repair the 19 bridges damaged or washed out in the state’s motorized sports trail system. Maine’s ATV club volunteers are scrambling to repair and open trails for the season, and some won’t open at all this year. The 100-year storms, primarily in December and January, followed by more rain,  left unspeakable damage to trailbeds and downed trees in their wake. Although snowmobile clubs patched a system together for the low-snow season, many of those repairs were temporary. The price tag to fix the storm damage is estimated between $6 million and $7 million.

Norway Savings contributes $1K for Lovell accessible trail project

SUN JOURNAL • May 19, 2024

Norway Savings Bank has contributed $1,000 to the Greater Lovell Land Trust for an accessible trail project. Established in 1985, GLLT is a nonprofit land conservation organization that aims to protect the ecosystems of the Kezar Lake, Kezar River, Cold River, and Sweden watersheds. GLLT is planning to convert its quarter-mile Storybook Trail at the Kezar River Reserve into a six-foot-wide, level and gravel-surfaced path.