The most comprehensive online source of conservation news and events in Maine and beyond, edited by Jym St. Pierre
SUN JOURNAL • July 8, 2024
The Sabattus Water District notified residents Monday morning of a water test confirming the presence of coliform bacteria and that a low amount of chlorine will be added to its distribution system as a precautionary measure. The results were from a “routine monthly sample in July,” the district’s notice said. “The bacteria is harmless, but used as an indicator.”
RUMFORD FALLS TIMES • July 8, 2024
Rumford town officials plan to seek a nearly $1.5 million state grant for “very, very large box culverts” on three stream crossings on the East Andover Road, the Whippoorwill Road and the Beliveau Road near Ellis River acquifer, the public water supply.
SUN JOURNAL • July 8, 2024
An unresponsive man was pulled from the Swift River on Monday night and rushed to Rumford Hospital. Deputies responded about 8 p.m. to a report of a person who may have drowned near the recreation trail. “Deputies immediately began CPR and continued lifesaving efforts until relieved by Mexico FD and rescue personnel.” The man was undergoing emergency medical care and it was unknown if he will survive his injuries.
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • July 8, 2024
Two 17-year-old brothers are suspected to have drowned in a Sanford recreation area on Sunday. Police received a call around 11 p.m. reporting that the brothers had not returned home by their curfew. The two had gone to the Holdsworth Park recreation area to swim in the lake. The car the teens were driving was found at the park by police and firefighters. The teens’ bodies were then found in the water around midnight. Their deaths are being investigated by police and the state medical examiner, but foul play is not suspected.
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • July 8, 2024
Maine officials are imagining an electric grid of the future nimble enough to communicate with buildings to cut energy use, provide power to electric vehicles adapted to serve as batteries, and keep pace with a growing array of solar and wind sources. The Governor’s Energy Office is leading a study, called for in legislation, to determine if a Maine-based organization could run the state’s electric grid while saving money for customers, improving reliability and more quickly reaching Maine’s climate goals. A Maine grid operator could speed the transition to clean energy.
TRIBUNE CONTENT AGENCY • July 8, 2024
The opportunity to see fascinating species thriving in their natural environments draws many of us to national parks, waterways and wildlife refuges every year. Almost as alluring is the appeal of getting the perfect picture that captures an animal’s beauty, ingenuity or charisma. But our Instagram aspirations must not be achieved at animals’ expense. Experts agree that the best way to protect and respect wildlife is to put our binoculars and zoom lenses to good use by giving these animals plenty of room to roam. ~ Michelle Reynolds, PETA Foundation
TIMES RECORD • July 7, 2024
Dairy processors in Maine and across the Northeast can now apply for the Dairy Processor Modernization Grant through the Northeast Dairy Business Innovation Center. With a total of $1.2 million in funding, this grant will fund specialized equipment to help processors expand capacity, increase efficiencies and improve packaging. Dairy processors play a vital role in regional food supply.
TIMES RECORD • July 7, 2024
Sound artist Dianne Ballon will be at the Maine Maritime Museum Friday in conversation with Associate Curator Catherine Cyr to discuss their work in creating “Lost and Found: Sounds of the Maine Coast by Dianne Ballon.” The July 12 talk is from noon to 1:15 p.m. and is free, but preregistration is required.
ASSOCIATED PRESS • July 7, 2024
Forecasters said Sunday that a long-running heat wave that has already shattered previous records across the U.S. will persist, baking parts of the West with dangerous temperatures that will soar into the 100s and holding the East in its hot and humid grip throughout the week.
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 7, 2024
Winding through the forest around mountains and ponds, the carriage roads of Acadia National Park are a great way to explore the park by bicycle. These wide, smooth roads are closed to motorized vehicles (with a few exceptions). They feature massive historic stone bridges and lead to some incredible views of Mount Desert Island. With a whimsical, rustic feel, the carriage roads follow the natural curves of the landscape, circling around Jordan Pond and Eagle Lake, and visiting several smaller bodies of water. They also hug the slopes of several mountains, including Day, Penobscot, Parkman and Sargeant.
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • July 7, 2024
Maxwell’s Farm in Cape Elizabeth, with a history that stretches to before the American Revolution and has more recently been a favorite spot for pick-your-own strawberries, is closing after 51 years. The farm posted a statement on its website Sunday that says rising but unspecified challenges for family farms and “increasing barriers at most every turn” have made it impossible for the owners to balance their faith, family and farm. The family traces its roots to James Maxwell, who in 1762 paid 2 pounds, 6 shillings and 8 pence “lawful money” for 25 acres.
MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • July 7, 2024
The nesting season is in full swing and we often get some interesting reports of unusual wildlife behaviors that come with it. American goshawks are fiercely territorial and are the most likely to seriously injure someone getting too close to their nests. While males are off foraging for food that they’ll bring back to the nest, females stay to protect the chicks. There are lots of other signals that birds give us when we are too close to their nest or young, so be on the lookout. If you can avoid that spot for a short time, you can help increase the success of that nest and also keep from getting some goshawk scars. ~ Maine Audubon Staff Naturalist Doug Hitchcox
MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • July 7, 2024
A fracas over parking for beach access in a Cape Elizabeth neighborhood highlights – yet again – tension between public, private and the supposed 'character” of a place. As the ongoing intertidal access case has shown us, public support for better public access to Maine’s beaches is – surprise, surprise – extremely robust. As neighborhoods up and down the coast seek to turn back the clock and close visitors out, that support will need to strengthen again. It needs to become so strong that it feels like common sense, which it is.
MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • July 7, 2024
Your June 23 editorial warned of the high costs of dealing with Maine’s PFAS crisis. Recent articles have also warned of the costs that will be incurred by the worsening climate crisis. Ironically, the Maine Public Employees Retirement Fund invests in companies that are contributing to both of these crises. Would it not be an act of care to avoid profiting from investments that are harming present and future retirees? ~ Tom Mikulka, Ph.D., Cape Elizabeth
MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • July 7, 2024
Judging by the number of pickup trucks and motorcycles roaring up and down highways, large and small, the laws regarding modified muffler systems and the excessive noise they produce are not enforced. it appears neither law enforcement nor Maine state inspectors are doing anything to stop noise pollution on our roads. ~ Janice Robinson, Topsham
MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • July 7, 2024
Keith Fletcher, 66, of Wells, passed away on July 2, 2024. Keith was a kind, passionate, and creative man who devoted his life to his family, land conservation, and music. After graduating from Antioch College in Ohio, where he earned a B.S. in 1980, Keith launched a career in land conservation. He also resumed his studies, finishing a M.S. from John Hopkins University in 1991. He championed conservation around the Delaware River, on the prairies of Iowa, and eventually across the woods and coastline of Maine. Most recently, Keith worked with Maine Coast Heritage Trust to help preserve Maine’s coast. He was also a member of the Wells Conservation Commission for 23 years.
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 7, 2024
The aquaculture apprentice program is a joint venture launched in 2023 by the Gulf of Maine Research Institute, the Maine Aquaculture Association, and Educate Maine. It was developed after a study found about 884 people working in the field as of 2022, with potential growth for up to 1,450 jobs by 2030, but only if aquaculture businesses can find the kinds of workers they need. The workers sea farming operations want most are ones with boat handling experience, as well as basic plumbing, electrical, construction and small engine repair skills. However those types of potential employees, with practical vocational training, are in the shortest supply.
KENNEBEC JOURNAL • July 6, 2024
Ornithologist Will Broussard led a small yet knowledgeable group on a hike Saturday, sponsored by Friends of Merrymeeting Bay, through a diverse and unique Merrymeeting Bay ecosystem, which is a globally significant bird habitat. A half-dozen local residents gathered for the hike that explored the area between the Kennebec and Eastern rivers that makes up the state-owned Green Point Wildlife Management Area in Dresden to watch and – perhaps more successfully on an overcast morning – listen for birds. Broussard, a Bowdoinham native with a passion for birds and nature, was the youngest person certified years ago by Cornell University’s Ornithology Lab to record bird sounds.
MAINE MONITOR • July 6, 2024
In the past decade, the state and roughly a dozen large nonprofit conservation groups have caught on to the idea that land and water preservation could also help boost Maine’s Downeast region’s lagging economy. A 2018 study reported that 19 percent of the two-county area was in some sort of conservation status — more than 700,000 acres of parks, wildlife refuges and preserves. And the figure has only grown. Much of that conserved land and water is being groomed for public access. There has been a large uptick in recreational tourism, and thus an influx of money. Conservation leaders say their Downeast planning efforts consider a crucial question: How do you create new recreational experiences, and new economic opportunities, while maintaining the culture of the region?
CBS 13 • July 7, 2024
Several children were rescued from rip currents in Old Orchard Beach Friday evening. Rip currents are rampant right now. Lifeguards sprang into action and rescued four children.
