Federal court denies request to halt Bar Harbor cruise limits

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 29, 2024

A federal court has denied a request by businesses and river pilots for an injunction to temporarily suspend local cruise ship restrictions that are currently under appeal. If it had been granted, the injunction would have stopped the town of Bar Harbor from pursuing those cruise limits until after the decision on the appeal. The request is now likely headed back to federal court. The new rules in the town’s ordinances and operating procedures cut cruise ship visitations to 1,000 disembarkations a day.

Aroostook town approves tax deal for new potato chip factory

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 29, 2024

Limestone residents voted Tuesday night to approve a tax incentive agreement to help an Aroostook potato chip company bring a $55 million plant to town. Taste of Maine Potato Chip Co. founders Bruce Sargent and Jim Pelkey of Presque Isle announced plans in February to build an 80,000-square-foot potato chip plant at the Loring Commerce Centre. The company will bring about 75 jobs to the area, possibly expanding to 100 as production ramps up. It’s the first Aroostook County venture to join a group of businesses poised to revitalize the former air base.

Opinion: The global climate crisis and the presidential election

CENTRAL MAINE • May 29, 2024

When we consider the climate crisis, the evidence is clear and frightening: Conditions are becoming shockingly worse for the world, the United States, and Maine. Killing heat waves, rising sea levels, raging wildfires, and spreading diseases: “global weirding’s” impacts make headlines nearly every day. In Maine we’ve become all too familiar with more frequent severe storms that cause flooding, coastal devastation, and mass power outages. Worldwide, 2023 was the hottest year ever recorded; so far, 2024 is even hotter. Will our future be more secure and livable under either presidential candidate? President Biden’s commitment to combat global warming stands in stark contrast to the the previous Trump administration. The contrast between presidential candidates could not be more stark than in climate strategy. ~ David Vail, Professor of Economics emeritus at Bowdoin College and a member of the Citizens’ Climate Lobby Economics Research Network

3 new murals coming to downtown Bangor this summer

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 29, 2024

Hammond and Main streets in downtown Bangor will welcome three new pieces of art this summer. A 3,400-square-foot mural will run along the shoulder of Hammond Street from the intersection of Central Street and end just after the U.S. Post Office. Katahdin will be depicted in front of the U.S. Post Office, and a flowing water design, representing the Penobscot River, will be painted between Central and Franklin streets. Native fish and wildlife will be scattered throughout the mural. The Maine Discovery Museum and Bangor Area Stormwater Group launched a contest for K-12 students to design a mural to go around a storm drain on the sidewalk outside the Main Street museum. The voting period will end on June 12, and the winner will be announced at an event for the museum’s “River in Our Backyard” exhibit. A two-story mural is coming to the side of 116 Hammond St. The mural, funded by grants, sponsorships and donations, will show the Maine forest floor in spring, including a vernal pool and native flora and fauna.

Maine’s rural lake camps are seeing historic interest

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 29, 2024

Buyers looking at lakefront camps in Maine used to be able to get good deals in rural areas, but real estate agents like Mallett say that is happening much less in today’s crazy real estate market. Skyrocketing prices in southern areas have sent prospective buyers north, sending prices soaring and squeezing some buyers out. In Piscataquis County the average home sales price has skyrocketed from $227,000 in March 2020 to $382,000 at that time in 2024. That’s a 68 percent increase in four years, and reflects a surge in demand for little inventory.

It’s best to leave young animals alone if you find them in the woods

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 29, 2024

Human intervention should be a last resort. The state relies on volunteer wildlife rehabilitators, who can easily be overwhelmed by large numbers of animals being transported to their facilities. Only the animals with the best chance for survival should be transferred, and only after an adequate amount of time has gone by in the field. They can’t all be saved, particularly when an injury is involved. The best course of action, initially, is no action. Allow the adult females adequate time to reunite with their young. This would include the first overnight period.

Opinion: We Can Turn a River in Maine Into a Paradise for Salmon

NEW YORK TIMES • May 28, 2024

In his 1937 book, “Kennebec: Cradle of Americans,” the poet Robert Tristram Coffin called Maine’s sprawling river a “paradise for fish.” But pollution and dams that block spawning runs for Atlantic salmon, sturgeon and shad put an end to that world. The Kennebec River now runs mostly clean, thanks to laws that reduced pollution. Yet four hydroelectric dams, two built in the early 20th century and the other two in the 1980s, remain on the lower reaches of the 150-mile-long river and continue to prevent endangered salmon from reaching their single most important spawning tributary, the Sandy River. Now a confluence of factors makes this the time to right this wrong. ~ John Waldman

How a simple fix could double the size of the U.S. electricity grid

WASHINGTON POST • May 28, 2024

As developers rush to install wind farms and solar plants to power data centers, AI systems and electric vehicles, the nation’s sagging, out-of-date power lines are getting overwhelmed – slowing the transition to clean energy and the fight against climate change. But experts say that there is a remarkably simple fix: installing new wires on the high-voltage lines that already carry power hundreds of miles across America. Just upgrading those wires, new reports show, could double the amount of power that can flow through America’s electricity grid.

Angus King impressed by Wales farm operated by Somali farmers

SUN JOURNAL • May 28, 2024

As the first seedlings began to spread their roots at the Somali Bantu Community Association’s Liberation Farms on Tuesday, U.S. Sen. Angus King stopped by to see how things were going. “I like this on every level — the food, getting back to the land and the community,” King said. Founded in 2001, Cultivating Community is building a movement through programs that provide joyful outdoor educational experiences, fresh culturally important foods grown by and for immigrants and communities of color, and community growing spaces.

Animal control officer reports ‘a lot of goats’ in Livermore Falls

SUN JOURNAL • May 28, 2024

The Livermore Falls Select Board has tasked the Planning Board with possibly developing an ordinance governing livestock in the village area. Animal Control Officer Kenneth Pelletier told selectmen at their May 21 meeting that in the past 90 days he received 45 to 55 complaints, six of them about goats. “We have a lot of goats,” he said. In addition to the goats, there are complaints about chickens and pigs, and about odors. There are state laws on the “Right to Farm” and an amendment to the Maine Constitution addressing the “Right to Food” which the Planning Board will need to consider.

A call for sludge regulation

MAINE MORNING STAR • May 28, 2024

Eight years ago, Maine uncovered the edge of a vast agricultural problem when PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) surfaced on a third-generation dairy farm. The toxic fluorinated compounds in the farm’s water, soil, pasture grasses and milk traced back to wastewater sludge spread on fields more than a decade earlier. In 2022, Maine became the first state to ban land application of sludge and the sale of compost containing sludge. No such protections exist for the larger U.S. food supply. To force faster adoption of federal regulations governing PFAS in sludge, MOFGA announced last week its intent to join a lawsuit against the EPA.

U.S. offers state a lease to research offshore wind in the Gulf of Maine

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 28, 2024

Federal officials on Tuesday offered Maine a lease to research offshore wind turbines in the Gulf of Maine, moving the state closer to establishing a presence in the budding zero-carbon energy industry. The site is southeast of Portland, 28 nautical miles off the coast. If developed, it will include up to 12 floating offshore wind turbines generating up to 144 megawatts of renewable energy. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management said the lease, site assessment and related activities would have no significant impact on the environment. When the bureau announced a larger, 2 million acre site in March, it generally won praise, with some calls for greater protection of habitats and fishing areas. The agency said that area is 80% smaller than its initially planned wind energy area after consulting with tribes, local residents, the fishing community and others.

Hollywood movies rarely reflect climate change, Colby researchers find

ASSOCIATED PRESS • May 28, 2024

Researchers at Maine’s Colby College have published a study to determine if today’s Hollywood blockbusters are reflective of the current climate crisis. “The top line is just that the vast majority of films, popular films produced over the last 10 years in the United States, are not portraying the world as it is,” Matthew Schneider-Mayerson, lead researcher, said. “They are portraying a world that is now history or fantasy — a world in which climate change is not happening.”

Maine gets greenlight for landmark floating offshore wind research array

MAINE MORNING STAR • May 28, 2024

Maine has gotten the green light to develop the nation’s first floating offshore wind research site in federal waters. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management offered a research lease to Maine last Friday for a floating offshore wind research array in the Gulf of Maine after an environmental assessment found the proposal would have no significant environmental impacts, according to an announcement Tuesday. 

Outdoor Learning Initiative expands to reach more Maine students

MAINE PUBLIC • May 28, 2024

Four thousand middle and high school students this year will take part in the Outdoor Learning Initiative, a federally funded program that brings low-income children together to learn about the wilds and waters of Maine. The Mills administration launched the Initiative two years ago. Because of high demand, the program is being expanded with more than $6 million. Chewonki will host 50 students in its Maine Rivers, Trails and Waves Program this summer, an increase of 30 students from last year. During two-week adventures, the kids will canoe the Allagash, or hike Katahdin, or sea kayak around Mount Desert Island.

Opinion: Maine needs to hold big polluters accountable

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 28, 2024

The climate crisis is accelerating. Our state’s infrastructure faces unprecedented threats from increasing storm surges, high winds, flooding and erosion. Fortifying against these threats must include holding major polluters accountable for their role in climate destabilization. High-emission corporations such as ExxonMobil bear financial responsibility for the costs associated with extreme weather damage. Maine should pass legislation to ensure those most responsible for the crisis are also responsible for footing the bill. Maine had a chance to start this process with An Act to Assess Impact Fees on Megayachts. This legislation could have generated millions of dollars for vital climate mitigation infrastructure and harbor projects. Also, the companies that operate cruise ships should be required to invest in the infrastructure they use during up and down the Maine coast. ~ Rep. Grayson Lookner, Portland

What are those beautiful neon pink slime balls in the Maine woods?

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 28, 2024

I’ve been wandering the Maine woods since I was a little girl. I’ve become familiar with its flora and fauna. Yet the wilderness keeps surprising me with things I’ve never seen before — like neon pink slime mold. Slime molds aren’t fungi or lichens. They’re single-celled organisms that move around, similar to an amoeba. At that stage, they’re too small for people to see. But sometimes, they congregate to form threads and fruiting bodies that resemble mushrooms. Hundreds of slime mold species have been documented throughout the world. Slime molds play an important role in the ecosystem. Often found on decaying forest litter and rotting wood, they serve as decomposers and recycle nutrients. They feed on bacteria, which decomposes plant matter. They also serve as food for worms, beetles and other creepy crawlies.

Baxter State Park is the crown jewel of Maine's public lands

WCVB • May 27, 2024

Baxter State Park is truly the crown jewel of Maine’s public lands. Just north of the Golden Road. Nearby, the New England Outdoor Center is a full-service wilderness resort, featuring lakeside cabins, eco-lodges, a restaurant to go along with its rafting, mountain biking and wildlife tours. In the winter, the center offers skiing, snowmobiling and other winter adventures.

Opinion: Flying is getting more turbulent. Climate change is partly to blame.

BLOOMBERG • May 25, 2024

As our planet’s atmosphere warms, wind shears — variations in wind direction or speed — within jet streams are increasing and strengthening clear-air turbulence. A 2021 report from the National Transportation Safety Board made 24 recommendations aimed at reducing the incidence of turbulence accidents and associated injuries. More significant investments should also be made into remote sensing of CAT and improved forecasts. On the detection front, there’s promise being found in updated radar systems, including laser-based radar (also known as lidar), as well as a new type of infrasound microphone developed by NASA. Any investments will be worth it for the safety and comfort of passengers alone, but aviation executives will also be happy to know that the investments could lead to savings — or at least stop potential losses escalating. ~ Lara Williams

More Maine farmers are working together to sell their products

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 26, 2024

Lobster, dairy and grain cooperatives have long been present in Maine, but a new crop of farmers is bringing collaborative business models to flowers, medicinal plants, online markets, compost and even farms themselves. Those involved in these types of businesses say they’ve seen an increased interest in many forms of group agricultural ventures as Maine’s farms get smaller but running them remains expensive and risky. Pooling resources gives farmers more time, saves them money and provides access to markets they couldn’t reach alone.