L/A RiverFest 2024 wraps up with a regatta on the Androscoggin River

SUN JOURNAL • July 20, 2024

The L/A RiverFest wrapped up its two-day celebration of the Androscoggin River with a regatta Saturday at Simard-Payne Memorial Park. Seventeen teams took to the Androscoggin as drums were heard by the docks. Thuds reached all the way to the John T. Jenkins Memorial Bridge that links the Twin Cities together above the river. In the afternoon, folks with different types of vessels were able to hop on the water and cruise the Androscoggin. Festival organizers said that the L/A RiverFest is set to return next summer with even more water fun.

How to get the most out of hiking Maine’s Monhegan Island

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 20, 2024

Many people visit Monhegan to hike and enjoy nature. In fact, the majority of the island is wilderness, explorable by a network of well-kept trails. Nearly 400 acres are owned by Monhegan Associated Inc., which is one of the first land trusts on the East Coast. Established in 1954, it manages about nine miles of hiking trails that fan out from the village and thread through the woods to visit towering ocean cliffs on the island’s eastern side. Monhegan is an excellent place for birding. The island attracts birding groups from all over in the spring and fall to spot a variety of species as they migrate. If interested to learn more, the book “The Birds of Monhegan” by Brett M. Ewald records 336 species of birds that have been seen on Monhegan.

Here’s what Maine Audubon learned from decades of loon counts

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 20, 2024

The No. 1 killer of Maine’s most iconic summer bird is boat strikes for the first time ever, pushing lead fishing tackle down to No. 2. Waves from the wakes of boats, which are more numerous than ever on lakes and ponds, can flood out nests, and development and the effects of climate change continue to pose challenges. But in spite of the human-made dangers they navigate, the state’s common loon population has nearly doubled in the last 40 years in southern Maine, said Hannah Young, the Maine Audubon Society’s loon count coordinator.

Why the Bubbles are among Acadia’s most iconic mountains

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 20, 2024

The Bubbles — North Bubble and South Bubble — are popular hiking destinations because they feature open granite ledges that offer amazing views of the park. In addition, South Bubble is home to Bubble Rock, a large, round boulder that’s perched on the edge of a ledge. It looks as if it might tumble down the slope at any moment. Yet it has sat there for thousands of years.

L/A RiverFest 2024: Celebrating the Androscoggin River

SUN JOURNAL • July 19, 2024

This year’s Lewiston Auburn RiverFest kicked into high gear Friday morning at the start of the two-day event. Many were glad to see the Androscoggin River back in its full glory. Jim Boulet, a lifelong Lewiston resident, said he was excited that the festival was advocating for recreation with a clean Androscoggin.

State will decide on Juniper Ridge public benefit by August

MAINE MONITOR • July 19, 2024

The Maine Department of Environmental Protection will decide by August 23 whether a proposed expansion of the state’s largest landfill would provide a substantial benefit to the public, a required step before the landfill’s manager, the state’s Bureau of General Services, can apply to increase the capacity of the facility. If approved, the expansion will add 11 years to the operating capacity of Juniper Ridge, which takes in roughly half of the state’s waste, and add 61 acres to its footprint. Without the expansion, Juniper Ridge will run out of room by early 2028. Expanding the landfill, said Old Town resident Ed Spencer, “might partially benefit most Mainers, but it certainly will have negative environmental quality impacts for local humans. This is a sacrifice.”

Project 2025 calls for the repeal of the Antiquities Act

STATES NEWSROOM • July 19, 2024

The “conservative” Project 2025 initiative calls for the repeal of the Antiquities Act, established to safeguard some of America’s most iconic public lands. Published by the Heritage Foundation, Project 2025 is a manifesto describing the policies that a new Republican administration could enact. National parks like the Grand Canyon, Grand Teton and four of Utah’s Big Five — Arches, Capitol Reef, Zion and Bryce Canyon — all started as national monuments, designated by a president who used the Antiquities Act. Katahdin Woods & Waters National Monument in Maine was also created by use of the the Antiquities Act. Since 1906, the act has been used over 300 times to set aside millions of acres of land for all Americans. Regardless of political affiliation, public lands have broad support even among voters in the West. 

Grants available for wilderness projects

MAINE ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS • July 19, 2024

Through its Wildlands Partnership, Northeast Wilderness Trust is joining forces with local land trusts to protect more wilderness across the Northeast. Eligible land trusts can apply for financial support from the Wilderness Trust to help cover associated project costs. Partners may also apply to enroll in NEWT’s Wildlands Carbon program and earn additional revenue. Since its inception in 2020, five partner land trusts across three states have participated in the Wildlands Partnership to safeguard almost 9,000 forever-wild acres. The Partnership’s second phase, launched in 2023, was a resounding success: seven partner land trusts are working with NEWT to protect additional acres of wildlands this year. Building on Phase II’s momentum, the Wilderness Trust is pleased to open applications for Phase III of the Partnership.

Letter: EVs aren’t right for Maine

SUN JOURNAL • July 19, 2024

Electric vehicles are not right for Maine. True, they are smooth and powerful, but good luck in the charging arena. There is not a single public charger of any kind in all of New Auburn. I have to wonder why the state is investing in anything other than supercharges at this time. Ten percent to 80% in as little as 30 minutes. ~ Michael Lemay, Auburn

Column: Dying baby birds are becoming an epidemic

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 19, 2024

May marked the 12th consecutive month of record-breaking temperatures globally. June will be the 13th. July is on pace to smash that record again. Readers are asking if hot weather kills nestlings. It does. In fact, it’s an epidemic. It’s been abnormally hot in Maine, and the rest of the country has been even hotter. Three billion birds have disappeared from the planet since 1970. The biggest factors contributing to the decline have been habitat loss, outdoor cats and collisions with man-made structures. At least the birds die one at a time and avoid a mass loss. Excessive heat can kill off an entire brood at once. Losses mount exponentially. As heat bakes the Pine Tree State, mountain birds can move upslope. Eventually, they run out of mountain. As sea level rises, Maine’s salt marshes flood more often, jeopardizing birds that nest there. Soon, they run out of marsh. When their habitat changes too quickly, few animals can adapt fast enough. ~ Bob Duchesne

Summer residents try blocking workforce housing project on MDI

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 18, 2024

A group of property owners in Northeast Harbor, all of whom are seasonal residents who own property near the planned development site, has filed a court appeal to try to overturn local approval of a workforce housing development. The project, proposed by the local nonprofit organization Mount Desert 365, would create six housing units reserved for income-qualified year-round residents at the corner of Neighborhood and Manchester roads in the Mount Desert village of Northeast Harbor. The group of seven property owners challenged the town’s approval in the state’s Business and Consumer Court, but Justice Thomas McKeon ruled last month in favor of the town and upheld the town’s approval of the proposed development.

Letter: Reagan Paul right about offshore wind

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 18, 2024

I state Rep. Reagan Paul and particularly with regard to her stand on offshore wind power. Paul is supporting fishermen in opposition to offshore wind power where it could hurt the fishing industry, and at the same time she is considering environmental impacts. I have been up close to wind turbines. They are much more noisy than I expected and I wonder how they will impact various kinds of sea wildlife. ~ Terry D. Atwood, Prospect

A New York company will be paid $310K to clean and patrol downtown Bangor

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 18, 2024

Downtown Bangor Partnership is finalizing an agreement with Streetplus, a Brooklyn-based urban safety, cleaning and hospitality service. The company will hire five local personnel who will be tasked with a series of responsibilities, including to clean up litter and report vandalism to the appropriate city department, patrol downtown and can walk people to their vehicles if they feel unsafe, and approach people who are homeless downtown and direct them to local services that can meet their needs.

Smoke plumes may reach U.S. as wildfires in Canada erupt

WASHINGTON POST • July 18, 2024

the fire season in Canada has suddenly come alive with a recent flare-up of blazes reminiscent of last summer, the country’s worst fire season on record. One of the biggest eruptions of thick smoke from Canada’s wildfires is beginning to drift south, with the Midwest, Great Lakes and eventually Northeast potentially in its path.

Council Corner: A path to continued land conservation in Scarborough

SCARBOROUGH LEADER • July 18, 2024

The November ballot includes a request to replenish the Scarborough land bond fund, a town fund that was created in 2000 for the purpose of purchasing land for conservation. Scarborough voters have overwhelmingly supported every land bond referendum since the creation of the land bond fund in 2000. The town has contributed $7.5 million towards the acquisition of land for conservation in this 24-year span. No other town in Maine has spent as many local dollars on conserving their natural resources. There is approximately $14,000 remaining in the town’s land bond fund. The request before the Town Council is for $6 million. With a town goal to conserve 30% of Scarborough by 2030, more funds are needed. There are many public and economic benefits to land conservation that make this goal so important for Scarborough.

2nd fox tests positive for rabies in Bath

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 18, 2024

A second fox has tested positive for rabies in Bath. That follows a case on June 28 involving an older fox in the same area, according to Police Chief Andrew Booth. The young fox was spotted about 6 a.m. Monday wandering around the Big Apple and walking into traffic on Route 1, Booth said, adding that callers reported that the animal was acting sick. Officers later found the fox near Cottage Street, where they determined it wasn’t “acting normally and was potentially rabid.” They captured the fox and euthanized it, Booth said Thursday morning. Subsequent testing confirmed the fox had rabies.

Organizations work to keep conservation lands connected to save species

TIMES RECORD • July 18, 2024

Established in 2002, River~Link is a recreational trail and wildlife corridor connecting the Sheepscot and Damariscotta rivers. It extends from the northern forests to the southern marshes, encompassing woodlands where bobcats roam and lawns where groundhogs hibernate. Land for Maine’s Future secured the initial funding that launched the River~Link project, sparking a partnership among several neighboring land trusts, municipalities, nonprofit organizations and state agencies that has grown ever since. In the future, Coastal Rivers Conservation Trust hopes to merge the River~Link corridor with a more extensive project called 12 Rivers to expand the continuous tract from the Kennebec River to Penobscot Bay.

YMCA suspends summer day camps in Portland and Standish

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • July 18, 2024

YMCA of Southern Maine has suspended day camp programming this summer at the Portland Branch and at Otter Pond in Standish as the organization strives to get its membership and finances back to pre-pandemic levels following deep staffing and program cuts.

Letter: Golden is not a true Democrat

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • July 18, 2024

How much more of U.S. Rep. Jared Golden’s voting with Republicans are we as Maine Democrats going to stand for? It seems clear that Golden is simply setting himself up for a run at Susan Collins’ seat in the Senate or the Maine governorship in 2026. His failure to support/introduce bills while currently a U.S. congressional representative — which protect our environment from the ravages of vehicle emissions, protect our fish and wildlife, encourage solar and wind power generation over coal and oil — are the reasons he is an unreliable Democrat. ~ David McKechnie, Saco

Maine’s growing permaculture movement hosts 1st conference

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 18, 2024

Permaculture, an alternative farming method focused on creating self-sustaining systems, is moving from the fringes of agriculture to wider adoption. So is agroforestry, which uses forest land in tandem with growing food and raising animals. Interest in both is large enough to sustain Maine’s first conference dedicated to the two practices, happening this weekend in Unity. The Maine Permaculture and Agroforestry Convergence also invites people with interests in mycology, herbalism, food sovereignty, traditional skills, activism and homesteading. The event is organized by the Maine Ecological Design School.