NECEC converter station nears halfway to finish line in Lewiston

SUN JOURNAL • July 9, 2024

A major piece of the controversial New England Clean Energy Connect transmission line through central Maine is roughly halfway complete in Lewiston. The estimated $250 to $300 million converter station off outer Main Street, which will convert direct current from Hydro-Quebec to alternating current for consumer use, made Lewiston one of the transmission line’s most ardent supporters even as other municipalities and a majority of the public opposed it. Following a two-year hiatus due to a citizens’ initiative, the project restarted in August 2023 after a court ruling sided with NECEC.

Maine's endangered plovers weather climate change

MAINE PUBLIC • July 9, 2024

Beaches change all the time, as sand moves and shifts naturally, said Laura Minich Zitske, director of the coastal birds project at Maine Audubon. But the storm damage this year was something different. Decades of development have interrupted the wide, sandy beaches plovers need to nest. The construction of housing, jetties and seawalls has cost plovers about two thirds of the Maine beaches used as nesting habitat, according to the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. The plover population in Maine was down to just a handful of breeding pairs back in the early 1980s. Last year nearly 160 nesting pairs were sighted.

Maine joins 9 other states to promote regional planning to boost clean energy

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • July 9, 2024

Maine has joined nine other Northeastern states promising to coordinate their work to improve the reliability of electricity transmission and smooth the transition to clean energy. The Governor’s Energy Office signed the agreement with Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont. It establishes common technical standards for offshore wind transmission to reduce the cost of meeting federal and state goals and be compatible with future projects connecting wind energy to the grid. State officials will cooperate on the planning and development of regional transmission infrastructure and may work with utilities, manufacturers, environmental groups and others.

These paddleboarders are making a 175-mile journey from Moosehead Lake to Atlantic Ocean

MORNING SENTINEL • June 9, 2024

“It’s just a beautiful day to be on the water,” Chris Morgan said Tuesday from the Oosoola Park boat launch. Morgan’s 175-mile journey down the Kennebec River was about halfway complete as he led a group of about 20 paddlers into the water. It was just under 90 degrees and partly cloudy, with smooth water and hardly any wind along the river. Morgan was leading the jaunt down the river as he continues his “source to sea” journey from Moosehead Lake to the Atlantic Ocean. His stop at Oosoola Park marked roughly the halfway point in the journey, with just over 80 miles of river already traversed. Morgan is advocating for the creation of a ‘paddle trail’ along the Kennebec, with dedicated take-out and put-in spots, campsites and potentially gear rentals along the way.

Conservation groups cheer decision preserving state authority in Kennebec River dam relicensing

MAINE PUBLIC • July 9, 2024

Conservation groups are cheering an appeals court decision they say will help to preserve some state oversight in the relicensing process for the Shawmut Dam on the Kennebec River. The state initially drafted a denial of the water quality certification for the dam, operated by Brookfield Renewable, in 2021, as part of a federal dam relicensing process, pointing to concerns about the passage of endangered Atlantic salmon. Brookfield submitted an updated proposal, including significant modifications a few weeks before the state faced a deadline to act on it. The Maine DEP denied the application, saying that the state didn't have time to evaluate significant changes and needed additional information. Brookfield argued that, in its denial, Maine waived its right to participate in the relicensing process. FERC rejected that argument, and Brookfield then filed a petition for an appeals court to review the commission's order. The court ruled against Brookfield in a decision on July 5.

Teen hiker from Quebec released from hospital after collapse on Appalachian Trail near Caratunk

MORNING SENTINEL • July 9, 2024

Rescue workers aiding a teenage hiker, who fell unconscious after suffering from heat exhaustion Friday on the Appalachian Trail near Caratunk, helped cool her body temperature by using water from a nearby stream and applying ice packs, a state official said Tuesday. A Maine Forest Service pilot flew Elyssa Bernardin, 14, of Saint-Lambert, Quebec, at about 7 p.m. to a spot accessible by ambulance. The ambulance then transported her to Redington-Fairview General Hospital in Skowhegan.

Maine enters agreement with Northeast states to improve grid, ease transition to clean energy

MAINE MORNING STAR • July 9, 2024

Maine joined nine other Northeast states on Tuesday in signing a memorandum of understanding to coordinate efforts to establish a more efficient electric grid to accelerate the clean energy transition. The states agreed to coordinate regional planning of power transmission after requesting last year that the U.S. Department of Energy convene a first-in-the-nation multi-state initiative to explore ways to increase the flow of electricity between three different planning regions in the Northeast and assess offshore wind infrastructure.

Editorial: Enjoy another Maine summer

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 9, 2024

Even with the bugs and the crowds, there isn’t much to complain about as we enjoy another Maine summer. We welcome everyone from out-of-state. There are plenty of Maine summer adventures for everyone to enjoy. The Bigelow Preserve in Franklin County has more than 36,000 acres of public land, seven summits and a host of hiking trails. At the other end of the state, West Quoddy Head Lighthouse in Lubec provides an opportunity to watch the sunrise at the easternmost point in the continental U.S. Mackworth Island in Falmouth features a roughly mile-and-a-half loop trail that has great views of Casco Bay. Some call Gulf Hagas, near Brownville, “the Grand Canyon of the East.” That may be a slight overstatement, but the winding hike along the river gorge is, well, gorgeous.

Passamaquoddy rep who has fought for clean water to be honored

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 9, 2024

An official who helped bring clean drinking water to a Passamaquoddy Tribe reservation will be among the honorees at an event hosted later this week by the Wabanaki Alliance. Rena Newell, the former chief of the Passamaquoddy Tribe’s reservation at Sipayik — aka Pleasant Point — and the former Passamaquoddy Tribal Representative to the Legislature sponsored the legislation that two years ago gave the Passaquamoddy at Sipayik more power to regulate its local drinking water and resolve quality issues. Two other honorees will be Beth Ahearn, who worked with the Alliance while lobbying on environmental issues for Maine Conservation Voters, and Carol Wishcamper, a founding supporter of the Alliance who sat on the Maine Wabanaki-State Child Welfare Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

Opinion: Teaching your kids to swim this summer? Steer clear of floaties.

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • July 9, 2024

Consistent floatie use increases the risks of accidental drowning. An overreliance on the inflatables appears to be a factor in the childhood drowning crisis; drowning is the leading cause of death for children ages 1 to 4. ~ Lisa M. Zarda, United States Swim School Association

Thousands of Maine kids will adopt cows this year

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 9, 2024

Two of the Holstein calves born on an Old Town farm this fall will receive thousands of letters from schoolchildren across Maine. Throughout the academic year, kids will learn math and literacy with dairy-themed projects, get photos of and even video chat with the calves they “adopt.” This national “Adopt A Cow” program, organized by an array of dairy promotion councils across the Northeast and Midwest, was brought to Maine by the Dairy Promotion Board two years ago. Organizers hope it will reconnect children with agriculture and create future farmers as public and private groups across the state work to promote Maine’s strained dairy industry.

No, offshore wind development is not killing whales

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 9, 2024

Whales have been washing up dead on beaches since prehistoric times. Signs of human-caused injuries are a more recent phenomenon, with strikes by ships and entanglements with fishing gear among the causes. In recent years, another theory has surfaced that has tried to shift the blame for those deaths to something new: the development of offshore wind power. But those claims simply aren’t true, according to government officials and whale scientists. Offshore wind turbines, and the electricity they generate, are not killing whales.

An experimental moose hunt to reduce winter ticks shows promise

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 9, 2024

This fall it will have been four years since Maine wildlife managers introduced the so-called Adaptive Unit moose hunt in Wildlife Management District 4. This was an experimental hunt, using moose hunting permits to deliberately reduce moose densities, and, in so doing, trying to reduce winter tick populations that were decimating moose calves. Leading up to the experimental hunt the number of calves born each year had dropped significantly since the 1990s. In the worst year, 87 percent of collared calves died of tick infestations in the spring of 2022. Today, the moose calf mortality in the test area, WMD 4, was at 8 percent for the spring of 2024.

Wind turbine parts are now being trucked through Hancock County

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 8, 2024

The first shipment of sections of large wind turbines that will be erected in the Washington County town of Columbia was trucked Monday morning through Hancock County. The oversize deliveries are being transported overland from the Mack Point cargo terminal in Searsport. The terminal has served as a cargo facility for other wind projects too, with turbine blades recently being transported daily from Searsport to a wind farm in Moscow.

Analysis: The state of Maine is classifying artificial lures incorrectly

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 8, 2024

One type of artificial lure — soft plastic ones referred to as rubber worms — is provoking a heated debate among fishermen. The rubber worms build up in the stomachs of salmon and trout, but bass expel the soft plastic after a few days. Even the soft plastics labeled as biodegradable do not biodegrade in a fish’s lifetime. Although the state adjusts size and bag limits and other fishing regulations, it hasn’t looked at its definition of artificial lures in decades. It’s clearly time for the definition to change.

Sabattus Water District to treat system for coliform bacteria

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 seeks $1.5 million state grant for 3 stream crossings

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.

Deputies pull man from Swift River in Mexico

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.

Teenage brothers suspected to have drowned in Sanford park

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.

Maine to study whether creating local electric grid operator could cut costs, improve reliability

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.