Resigning airport official: I am ‘distracting’ from toxic foam clean-up efforts

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 11, 2024

The embattled director of the regional airport where a faulty, poorly maintained sprinkler system caused one of the nation’s biggest toxic foam spills says she is resigning because she had become a distraction from the oversight board’s cleanup efforts. “After much reflection, I’ve come to the difficult decision that my first duty is to ensure this good work goes on, unimpeded by outside politics and the political agendas of others,” Kristine Logan, executive director of Midcoast Regional Redevelopment Authority, said Friday night. “For that reason, I’ve decided to remove myself as a focal point.”

Jay partnering with Auburn agency to submit grant to develop master recreational plan

SUN JOURNAL • October 11, 2024

Jay, Livermore and Livermore Falls are partnering with and support of AVCOG on a grant application to the U.S. Department of Environmental Protection Agency’s Recreation Economy for Rural Communities planning assistance program, that would “focus on recreational planning as an economic driver for our communities.” AVCOG, or the Androscoggin Valley Council of Governments, is considered a regional planning agency and is providing the technical expertise for the grant application and will oversee it, if approved.

Director of Brunswick airport authority resigns in wake of toxic foam spill

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 11, 2024

About a month after state and municipal officials began calling for her resignation, the embattled director of the Brunswick Executive Airport — the site of one of the nation’s biggest toxic firefighting foam spills — is stepping down as the airport authority struggles to pay for a costly cleanup and regain the public trust. The Midcoast Regional Redevelopment Authority did not announce the resignation of Kristine Logan, its executive director since January 2022, until late Thursday, a few hours after the authority board held its annual meeting. But the announcement letter was written before the meeting had even begun.

Maine delegation concludes offshore wind mission in Denmark, Norway

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 11, 2024

Gov. Janet Mills and a handful of state officials are headed back to Maine after a trip to Scandinavia to discuss the growth of offshore wind with government and industry officials. Following two days in Norway, Mills and a team of state officials traveled to Denmark on Wednesday, meeting with the Danish Parliament’s Climate, Energy and Utilities Committee to discuss technical details relating to offshore wind production and Denmark’s energy goals. The U.S. Department of the Interior plans to auction off wind leases for eight sites in the Gulf of Maine on October 29.

Brunswick lawmakers say resignation of airport leader ‘not a time to celebrate’

MAINE MONITOR • October 11, 2024

The resignation of the leader of the agency that oversees Brunswick Executive Airport, which saw one of the nation’s biggest spills of forever chemical-laden firefighting foam in August, does not cancel out the need for major structural reform, said Brunswick state legislators Rep. Dan Ankeles and Sen. Mattie Daughtry.  The resignation comes after local lawmakers called for a change in leadership after the fire suppression system at the airport accidentally discharged more than 1,000 gallons of the toxic foam on Aug. 19. “This is not a time to celebrate,” Ankeles said. Both Ankeles and Daughtry have already begun the initial steps to introduce legislative reforms. Ankeles’ bills will specifically target removing and better regulating the firefighting foam, while Daughtry’s proposals will focus on the governance of Brunswick Landing.

Conservation group offers to buy Kennebec River dams, Maine lawmaker says

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • October 11, 2024

An environmental group has reportedly offered to buy four Kennebec River dams long targeted for removal, marking a major step in resolving a long political and economic dispute between conservationists and the owner of the dams. The Nature Conservancy made an offer for four Kennebec River dams owned by an offshoot of the multinational Brookfield Corp., state Sen. Brad Farrin, R-Norridgewock, said. Before the deal is final, he said the sides need to tackle the water needs of the Sappi North America paper mill in Skowhegan, which relies on the Shawmut Dam between Fairfield and Benton.

Midcoast kelp forests in flux

TIMES RECORD • October 10, 2024

Kelp forests provide key habitat for ocean life and help clean water to create a thriving marine ecosystem. But these underwater forests are in flux due to changes in modern fisheries and, a new study published in the journal “Ecology” revealed, rapid ocean warming. Douglas Rasher, a senior research scientist at Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences, steered his team in documenting the first comprehensive census of Maine’s kelp forests in nearly two decades. Their work highlights the significant impact of climate change on ecological relationships in Gulf of Maine waters, showing the widespread collapse of kelp forests along the southern coast compared to their resilience in cooler, northern reaches.

Maine seeks new operator to revive Rockland Branch rail line

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 10, 2024

The Maine Department of Transportation is seeking a new operator to restore freight service to the Rockland Branch rail line – and possibly fulfill a yearslong effort to extend Amtrak Downeaster passenger service from Brunswick to Rockland. The freight line has been without an operator since Midcoast Railservice announced in June that it would terminate its lease on the 57-mile, state-owned railroad after its primary customer, Dragon Cement in Thomaston, ceased production.

Maine’s high court hears oral arguments in beach access case

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 10, 2024

It’s divided neighbors and sparked heated debates throughout the state. But does the conflict behind a legal effort to expand public access to Maine beaches deserve a new ruling from the state’s law court? The Maine Supreme Judicial Court considered that question Thursday during a traveling session at Lewiston High School as the justices heard more than an hour of oral arguments about whether the intertidal zone, the area between the high and low tide lines, should be public.

Jared Golden wants to designate Leonard’s Mills as national logging history museum

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • October 10, 2024

U.S. Rep. Jared Golden wants to designate Leonard’s Mills as a national museum dedicated to forestry and logging history. The 2nd District Democrat introduced a bill Thursday that would designate the Maine Forest and Logging Museum as the National Museum of Forestry and Logging History. The museum, located in Bradley northeast of Bangor, was incorporated in 1960 to celebrate Maine’s forest heritage. It now encompasses more than 450 acres around Blackman Stream. Its centerpiece is Leonard’s Mills, a living history site that re-creates a 1790s logging and milling community.

Maine Coast Heritage Trust hires new senior director of stewardship

TIMES RECORD • October 10, 2024

One of the state’s largest land conservation organizations has announced a new senior director of stewardship to succeed Jane Arbuckle, who held the position for 28 years. Maine Coast Heritage Trust has selected Freeport resident Amanda Devine. Devine has been with the organization for 14 years as stewardship manager for Maine’s southern region. She will lead a team of 24 full-time land stewards who care for over 320 conservation easements and 150 preserves from Kittery to Lubec. Devine assumes the role during a time of significant environmental impacts brought on by rapid climate change, increased pressure on housing and community development, and the influx of invasive plant and animal species threatening Maine’s natural resources.

Dixfield high school students learn canoeing, hiking skills

RUMFORD FALLS TIMES • October 10, 2024

Dirigo High School teacher Kaitlyn O’Connor and students Phoenix Lee and Savannah Tuell spoke about their experiences with the school’s Summer Outdoor Learning Program during the Regional School Unit 56 board meeting at the school Tuesday. Six girls and one boy participated in the three-week hiking and canoeing program that included daytime activities and two overnight trips. Students learned how to control their emotions and be more confident in their choices.

Republican House candidate from Augusta claims government created recent hurricanes

MORNING SENTINEL • October 10, 2024

A Republican candidate for the Maine House of Representatives says the government is creating hurricanes to seize land and punish voters in conservative states. Wendy Lee MacDowell of Augusta amplified conspiracy theories and made a number of false claims about recent hurricanes in a series of posts this week to both her personal and campaign social media pages. Her posts alleged that the government is manufacturing “weaponized weather” to target conservative states with intense storms and seize their land for lithium mining, mirroring false claims from national politicians and social media ideologues about Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton. Both hurricanes were made more intense by human-caused climate change, scientists say, not secret government technology.

Portland exploring ways to reduce carbon emissions of cruise ships docked in port

MAINE PUBLIC • October 10, 2024

The City of Portland is exploring ways to reduce the carbon emissions of large cruise liners while docked in port.The city asked Central Maine Power to study the feasibility of creating a transmission system that would allow 3 cruise ships to get power off the grid and shut down their engines. CMP'S Meg Sullivan told members of Portland's Sustainability and Transportation Committee meeting Wednesday that its existing transmission system could not accommodate the required 25 megawatts of power. But she said the company is finalizing a grid upgrade that could handle shore power and increasing demand in the area.

Developers granted preliminary permits for tidal power project in Cobscook Bay

MAINE PUBLIC • October 10, 2024

The federal government has granted a preliminary permit to developers for the construction of a controversial tidal power dam in Cobscook Bay. Pembroke Tidal Power Project LLC, a subsidiary of a company known as Nestar Energy, said the dam could eventually generate 87,000 megawatt hours of electricity a year. But the project faces opposition from more than 60 Pembroke residents and the Passamaquoddy Tribe at Pleasant Point, who filed formal complaints and motions to intervene. They detailed concerns about the potential impacts on fishing, marine life, recreation, tribal resources and the Cobscook Bay environment. The National Marine Fisheries Service and Maine's Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife also filed intervention notices.

Maine’s highest court hears arguments for public access to intertidal land case

MAINE MONITOR • October 10, 2024

The Maine Supreme Judicial Court heard oral arguments Thursday afternoon for a case regarding public access to intertidal land in Maine. The outcome of the case will determine public access at Moody Beach, and isn’t expected until sometime next year. But the ruling’s impact will extend beyond the battle over the Wells beach, since it may reverse current limits on public access to the land between high and low tides all along Maine’s coast put into place decades ago.

Letter: Trail cams should not be allowed in Maine hunting

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • October 10, 2024

The use of trail cameras by hunters, especially multiple arrays of “live” cameras, which can track game movements in real time and feed this information back to hunters who may be sitting at home watching screens, is not “fair chase” nor is it in any sense ethical. Trail cameras are great for recreational watching wildlife in its natural habitat, but I believe that reliance on them to locate, track and ultimately kill game is an abuse by individuals who should be out in the field “hunting” for their quarry. Any game harvested primarily by their use is a hollow achievement, and their use during the hunting seasons should be illegal in Maine as it is in an increasing number of states. ~ Jerry Stelmok, Atkinson

Maine’s environmental advocates awarded for their work

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 9, 2024

Natural Resources Council of Maine supporters gathered Sept. 25 in Freeport for an event called Protecting What We Love: A Celebration of Action for Maine’s Environment. The 2024 People’s Choice Award went to Buck O’Herin for his lifetime of dramatically increasing land conservation in western Waldo County, working for protection of critical habitat for federally endangered Atlantic salmon in the Sheepscot River, and leading the charge to create the Hills to Sea Trail. York High School seniors Maxine Adelson, Chloe Whitbread and Aiden Ring were recognized for their successful efforts to ban disposable plastic utensils in their hometown. Castine entrepreneur Kate Pilotte, who runs locally sourced meal kit company Farm and Fish, successfully advocated for legislation to allow local businesses to offer reusable containers to reduce waste. MaryAlice Mowry, of Patten, and Dan Kusnierz, water resource manager for the Penobscot Nation, were honored for their leadership in protecting clean water and healthy fish and wildlife in the Katahdin region. Enock Glidden, an adaptive climber from Albany Township, was recognized for his work assessing trails for accessibility throughout the state.

State clashes with utility companies in federal court over ban on foreign spending on elections

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 9, 2024

Attorneys for the state of Maine and two major utility companies argued in federal appeals court Wednesday over the legality of a state law passed by voters last year that bans foreign governments from spending money on state and local races and referendum campaigns. The U.S. District Court in Portland got it wrong when it granted a preliminary injunction preventing the law from being enforced, argued Jonathan Bolton, an assistant attorney general representing the Maine Commission on Governmental Ethics and Election Practices. The new law is important to prevent spending by foreign entities similar to what Maine experienced leading up to a 2021 referendum about whether to halt a controversial power transmission corridor, he told the panel of three justices in the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston.

Pingree praises EPA for new lead pipe rules, funding to replace drinking water infrastructure

MAINE MONITOR • October 9, 2024

U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, a Democrat from Maine’s 1st Congressional District, praised the Biden-Harris administration Tuesday for a new rule requiring states to identify and replace lead pipes within 10 years. As a ranking member of the House Appropriations Interior and Environment Subcommittee, which oversees the Environmental Protection Agency, Pingree, along with fellow Democratic U.S. Rep. Jared Golden, has long pushed for such a rule.