Opinion: Massive corporate energy deal requires great scrutiny

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • September 10, 2024

In Maine, there have been years of public debate about the ownership of Central Maine Power, which once upon a time was a local company, rated one of the best-run utilities in the country. But alas, CMP now consistently ranks as one of the worst-performing utilities in the nation. The global energy giant Iberdrola has petitioned for a free pass from the Maine Public Utilities Commission (PUC) in its bid to become the sole owner of Central Maine Power’s parent company, Avangrid. This should not be granted. ~ Sen. Rick Bennett

What to expect at this year’s Common Ground fair

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • September 10, 2024

The 48th Common Ground Country Fair at the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association’s headquarters in Unity will be held Sept. 20-22, and organizers are expecting another busy year with attendance close to 60,000. More than 1,000 exhibits and events are planned, including 550 educational events, two organic farmers markets and 40 family-friendly activities, fair director April Boucher said. This year will feature more events on Sunday and new vendors in the prepared food and farmers market areas. Keynote speakers will address the challenges of farming in climate change conditions and keeping dairy farms in operation, reflecting the concerns of today’s Maine farmers.

Casco Bay Estuary Partnership awards resiliency grants

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • September 9, 2024

Casco Bay Estuary Partnership has awarded $112,726 in grants to projects in seven Maine nonprofits and communities. The funding, provided through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, was granted to projects supporting community resilience, ecosystem resilience and environmental data collection in the Casco Bay watershed. Casco Bay Estuary Partnership promotes the health of Casco Bay by collecting environmental data, educating and involving citizens in protecting the bay, restoring marshes and supporting projects with public and private partners.

Ecomaine plans $25 million recycling center upgrade

MAINE PUBLIC • September 9, 2024

One of Maine’s largest recyclers, Ecomaine, a community-owned corporation, plans to spend up to $25.2 million on state-of-the-art sorting equipment at a new recycling plant near its Portland headquarters. CEO Kevin Roche said the new automated sorting machines use imaging technology to separate mixed recycling such as paper, cardboard, plastic, glass and aluminum. The equipment will replace the company's current machines, installed around 2006. Back then, newsprint made up most of the recycling Ecomaine handled. With a boom in online shopping and home delivery, however, cardboard has become the top material it handles. The market for recyclables has rebounded from a slump after China stopped accepting most U.S. solid waste about seven years ago.

Midcoast volunteers to gather for coastal cleanup on 9/11

TIMES RECORD • September 9, 2024

Each September, thousands of volunteers gather on the shores of Merrymeeting Bay, the Kennebec River and lakes, streams and ponds across the state. Local environmental groups lead them to clean the shores and document the litter collected. The effort is part of a larger International Coastal Cleanup. In 2022, 2,530 pounds of marine debris were disposed of, and in 2023, the amount increased to 5,578 pounds. This year, Sarah Madronal, outreach manager at the Nature Conservancy, hopes to raise the bar. She will steer a cleanup at Basin Preserve in Phippsburg on Sept. 11. 

New lead tackle ban aims to protect loons

MAINE PUBLIC • September 9, 2024

Maine is expanding a ban on lead fishing lures to protect loons from fatal poisoning and conservationists are willing to buy up shops’ leftover inventory. A new law makes it illegal to sell little painted hooks called jigs. Lead fishing gear was the leading cause of death for loons in Maine until lawmakers banned bare sinkers and jigs ten years ago, said Laura Williams a biologist with Maine Audubon. Since then fewer loons have died from eating fishing gear, but lead poisoning is still a major cause of mortality. "So we have seen improvements and that’s why we continue to limit the use of small size lead tackle," Williams said. The conservation group is offering to pay local tackle shops cash for any lead jigs still in stock. Anglers will be prohibited from using the gear staring in 2026.

Donald Trump’s heavy tariffs are popular in Maine but could hammer key industries

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • September 9, 2024

Former President Donald Trump’s preference for heavy tariffs on foreign-made goods may play well in Maine, where bipartisan opposition to free-trade deals has been a decades-long theme. The Republican is looking to greatly expand on the tariffs that he put into place during his first term and that President Joe Biden’s administration has mostly kept them in place. But the Trump-era tariffs prompted a trade war that at least initially hurt lobstermen, wild blueberry farmers and others in legacy industries that enjoy solid support from politicians here.

Maine DEP to test Brunswick homeowners’ water for PFAS after foam spill

MAINE PUBLIC • September 9, 2024

The Maine Department of Environmental Protection says it will send representatives out to go door-to-door this week to speak with Brunswick homeowners that may have been affected by the spill of firefighting foam three weeks ago at the Brunswick Executive Airport. The DEP has identified about 45 residential properties that staffers will visit this week to speak with homeowners about tests of their drinking water. The state says the public drinking water supply for Brunswick Landing from the Brunswick-Topsham Water District was not affected by the spill and has been confirmed safe to consume.

Manufacturers push back against rising electricity bills tied to renewable power incentives

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • September 9, 2024

Manufacturers in Maine are pushing back against electricity costs that rose sharply this summer as a result of state policy meant to encourage the use of solar and wind power. The Public Utilities Commission is again looking into how much of a power bill should be used to incentivize renewable energy projects. Milo Chip, a paper products manufacturer, told the PUC its monthly bill is up by $6,000. The business may be forced to close. In July, regulators said an analysis showed that low electricity users in some classes are paying much more than if billed only on the volume of electricity used and large users in some classes paying much less. Falling costs for solar panels also undermine the case for sizable ratepayer subsidies for the solar industry. “It’s time we pulled the fire alarm,” said one company representative..

Maine Climate Council to hold public forums on climate proposals

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • September 9, 2024

Environmental groups are demanding more out of the first draft of Maine’s next climate action plan. Some want to build on the successes of the state’s first plan, Maine Won’t Wait, by setting more ambitious targets for climate goals and expanding them to underserved communities. But other advocates say Maine needs to get much tougher, especially on transportation emissions. The Maine Climate Council will likely hear from people like Cannon this month as it takes the earliest iteration of the next climate action plan on the road to six communities to find out how everyday people think Maine should be preparing for a warmer, wetter future. The Council has already held forums – one online that drew 100 people and one in Presque Isle. It heads to the Lewiston on Tuesday and Portland on Thursday, then moves on to Bangor, Ellsworth and Biddeford the following week.

Your tampons may contain toxic metals and forever chemicals

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • September 9, 2024

Health professionals are raising the alarm about contaminants discovered in menstrual products used monthly by a majority of American women for about 40 years of their lives. Studies found forever chemicals, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, in some tampons, pads and other products used to manage menstrual bleeding, along with other contaminants such as heavy metals and pesticides. Maine and other states are stepping up consumer protections with laws to limit sales of products with added forever chemicals, known as PFAS, and to require ingredients to be fully listed on labels. But many of those measures don’t take effect for a few years, leaving consumers to make a best guess at the safest products.

Trout Unlimited to host presentation on restoring sea-run trout

TIMES RECORD • September 8, 2024

The Merrymeeting Bay Chapter of Trout Unlimited is hosting a presentation titled “Restoring Sea-Run Trout in Maine Rivers” at its monthly meeting. Members and nonmembers can attend Tuesday, Sept. 17, 7 p.m., at Joshua’s Restaurant, 123 Maine St., Brunswick.

Maine considering public health emergency over mosquito-borne illnesses as animal cases tick up

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • September 8, 2024

Following more than a dozen reports of mosquito-borne illnesses in animals in Maine, state officials are considering declaring a public health emergency. State health and agriculture officials on Friday confirmed a case of eastern equine encephalitis in a horse from Somerset County, making it the third animal to be diagnosed with the disease.

Opinion: Harvesting growth, connection and purpose

TIMES RECORD • September 8, 2024

Throughout my time working with Merrymeeting Gleaners, I have learned and gained so much. I’ve learned about farming, relationship building, networking, teamwork, how to deadlift, recipes, how to identify so many strange vegetables, and alternative ways to decrease food waste. I’ve improved my knife skills in the kitchen, realized the importance of having a purpose, and discovered how food can bring so many people together. Until recently, I didn’t truly contemplate how having access to quality food, the ability/ space to be active, and a social network heavily impact our mental and physical health. ~ Nasra Abdirahman, Bowdoin College fellow with Merrymeeting Gleaners

Farmington, Sanford lead state in solar development

MAINE MONITOR • September 8, 2024

Farmington and Sanford lead the state in solar development. Farmington has the most solar installed in the state with 94.2 megawatts, followed by Sanford, with 62.6. Farmington’s dominance is largely due to a 76.5 megawatt array on a farm along the Sandy River. The project was a joint venture supported by Bowdoin College in Brunswick and partners in Massachusetts. The panels were erected on roughly 300 acres after a dairy farmer lost a contract with Horizon Organic in 2018 and was forced to downsize his herd. In Sanford, the prevalence of solar is partly the result of more than a decade of advocacy by the City Manager as well as the city’s sweet-spot location. Sanford is near multiple 145-kilovolt transmission lines. But it’s distant from congested urban areas so large blocks of land are still available for development. 

Column: The long and short of migrations from Maine

MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • September 8, 2024

As this fall migration proceeds, we can see how our attempts to sort out different migration strategies may lead us astray. One dichotomy that is often used for migratory birds is to contrast long-distance with short-distance migrants. Usually, a North American long-distance migrant describes a species that moves south out of the continent to Central America, South America or the Caribbean islands. A host of our nesting birds fall into this category: ruby-throated hummingbirds migrating to Central America, red knots to Argentina and scarlet tanagers broadly across South America. ~ Herb Wilson

Column: Show your Moxie, and drink up the beauty

MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • September 8, 2024

Moxie Mountain rises to a lofty 2,933 feet in the geographic center of Caratunk, 5 miles east of the Kennebec River. The mountain is often confused with Moxie Bald Mountain, which lies 8 miles to the northeast along the route of the Appalachian Trail. Atop the mountain’s south-facing cliffs, the grand 270-degree panorama takes in Number Five and Snow mountains, the Bigelow Range, the Crockers, Mount Redington, Sugarloaf, Mount Abraham, Jackson Mountain and many others. Bonus points: Go all in on the Moxie theme by packing a can of Moxie soda – a time-honored Maine classic – on your hikes. ~ Carey Kish

Column: Trying to to prevail against a seemingly invincible opponent

MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • September 8, 2024

Wild turkeys can be a formidable opponent. They may seem doltish diddling around our back yards, but step into their woods and they become a different creature. They’re eyesight is extremely keen, capable of recognizing all colors in the visible spectrum, detecting and processing any movement more acutely and rapidly than humans, and encompassing a 180-degree field of view with the slightest turn of their head. Their hearing is just as good, and though their brain is no bigger than the meat of a walnut, their instincts are honed for survival. Game laws are implemented to ensure fair chase. The odds lie clearly in favor of the game rather than those who pursue them. Luck always plays a role but if your goals is to prevail against a seemingly invincible opponent, it helps to know their Achilles’ heel. ~ Bob Humphrey

Editorial: State environmental protection needs to become much more active

MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • September 8, 2024

Here in Maine as nationally, we have watched the whole realm of environmental protection morph into a political football. For a state so proud of its woods and waters, for a population so besotted with and invested in its natural surroundings, this could not be a more unfortunate development. And that’s without getting into fundamental public health concerns. We cannot let environmental protection fall foul of the vagaries of weak rulemaking, underfunding or understaffing, particularly where those limited conditions are the product of deliberate rollback – the likes of which was favored by former Gov. Paul LePage and, at the federal level, implemented and now freshly touted by former President Trump. So, vote with the environment in mind this year.

Opinion: Policymakers in search of sound science need to listen to fishery

MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • September 8, 2024

Government regulators, who lack deep knowledge of what it takes to catch fish in the Gulf of Maine, reach conclusions about the state of our fish stocks that do not match what fishermen are seeing and what we know from being on the water every day. We know what tactics regulators are using to catch fish for their surveys, and we know they don’t work. This mismatch creates a vicious cycle of new limits on catch, which in turn threaten our businesses. I’m open to the possibility that industry is wrong. So, what do regulators have to lose? Work with us. ~ Jerry Leeman, Harpswell, veteran commercial fishing captain