The most comprehensive online source of conservation news and events in Maine and beyond, edited by Jym St. Pierre
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 16, 2024
Electricity Maine, a competitive electricity provider under fire from the state Office of the Public Advocate over its pricing, will refund $6 million to about 20,000 current and former customers – an average of $300 each – and pay a $315,000 penalty as part of a settlement approved Wednesday by state utility regulators.
SUN JOURNAL • October 16, 2024
Officials held a groundbreaking ceremony Wednesday for what is dubbed “one of the most important projects of its kind in the state” for protecting public health and natural resources. The $30 million project will expand the treatment capacity and build a large stormwater holding tank at the Lewiston Auburn Clean Water Authority treatment plant in Lewiston, preventing polluted water from entering the Androscoggin River during rainstorms.
MORNING SENTINEL • October 16, 2024
A new solar array was plugged into the electric grid this month, delivering enough power for about 500 homes, after a local family, Carl and Janet Quirion, provided the farmland for a new community solar project to combat climate change in Maine. The 11-acre solar farm is expected to send all of the 3.2 million kilowatt-hours of electricity it generates annually back into the local grid. Carl Quirion said, “We’re just burning too much fuel, and this will help a little bit.”
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • October 16, 2024
Since May, Maine’s utilities have incurred over $95 million in net energy billing costs as solar projects came online after the 2019 law creating the program took effect. The Maine PUC has also approved another $28.4 million increase of solar subsidy recovery, which many businesses are calling a “job-killing solar tax.” Solar subsidy cost increases range from 200 to 1,644 percent for some businesses. According to Maine’s public advocate the program will cost Maine ratepayers $220 million per year for the next 20 years. Legislative Republicans have been sounding the alarm about this for years. Our concern has never been about solar energy itself – diversifying our energy portfolio is a smart strategy done the correct way. Rather, our current solar energy policy has disproportionately harmed small businesses and led to higher costs for consumers. Now it threatens workers as companies must absorb these costs, cut back in other areas or close entirely. ~ Sen. Stacey Guerin
TIMES RECORD • October 15, 2024
Late afternoon on Oct. 11, a pink-clad crowd gathered at Freeport Town Hall. Rooted with the birch trees near the parking lot entrance, three funky sculptures known collectively as the “Pinkies,” stand 9 feet, 11 inches tall, allowing admirers to filter between their legs, an amalgamation of miscellaneous fishing gear, nets and ropes. The year-long installation created by artist Pamela “Posey” Moulton aims to spark community conversation on the impact of climate change on marine ecosystems and working waterfronts. Some may recognize the Pinkies from Payson Park in Portland, where they lived for the past two years before disappearing early this summer. The creature-like installations are made from bits and pieces gathered from recycling centers and coastal cleanup efforts led by Maine fishermen, nonprofit organizations and volunteers.
MAINE MORNING STAR • October 16, 2024
A longtime supporter of offshore wind, U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, the Democratic incumbent for Maine’s 1st Congressional District, said she is committed to pushing for even more federal support for renewable energy industries. Her Republican challenger, Ron Russell, does not support offshore wind. In fact, Russell said if elected he would do everything in his power to stop it. Maine has received millions of dollars from the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to deploy electric vehicle charging stations throughout the state and pilot an electric ferry program. Pingree is proud of her part in helping pass that “landmark” legislation. While Russell sees electric cars as cost prohibitive, he said increasing access to electric buses and ferries would be a more cost efficient option. Independent candidate Ethan Alcorn declined to directly answer questions about offshore wind and electrifying transportation.
MAINE MORNING STAR • October 16, 2024
Independent U.S. Sen. Angus King sees renewable energy sources as having the potential to free the United States from foreign oil markets. Democratic candidate David Costello said he would absolutely support efforts to further the development of offshore wind. He spoke of the industry’s potential to deliver not only clean and reliable energy, but also job opportunities and public health benefits. He believes Congress should expand the related tax credits and expedit the permitting process for necessary infrastructure. Republican challenger Demi Kouzounas criticized wind power for not being as clean as promised. Independent candidate Jason Cherry would support efforts to develop clean energy alternatives, but he’d like to see more collaboration with other countries.
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 16, 2024
On Sept. 24, 2024, a court ruling stated that fluoridation of our water poses an “unreasonable risk” to the health of our children, specifically: pregnant women, formula-fed infants and young children. The EPA will now be forced to regulate fluoride in water. Portland currently fluoridates our water, but perhaps it’s time to rethink that. The level that is considered “optimal” currently in the U.S. is 0.7 parts per million, which is also the target in Maine. Unfortunately, this level has been cited to cause an unreasonable risk of reduced IQ in children. The EPA can no longer ignore this risk, and we shouldn’t either. ~ Kara Dooley, Portland
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • October 15, 2024
Quill Hill is a must see for serious leaf peepers. Quill Hill is a 2,638-foot knob about four miles off Route 16 between Eustis and Rangeley. There is signage at the entrance. It is a little busy this time of the year, but the dirt road to the top is wide and well groomed. Up on the top, there is a 360-degree overlook with picnic tables and story boards to help you identify all of the lakes and mountains that loom in the distance, making for a breathtaking panoramic view, not only of the color-dappled foliage but the sweeping grandness that is so much Maine.
FORECASTER • October 15, 2024
A proposal to remove most of two dams along the Royal River in Yarmouth to restore the river ecosystem prompted a broad range of questions and comments during an informational session, underscoring the complexity of the project and strong feelings about the future of the river. Concerns from residents of North Yarmouth, which has no direct control over the fate of the dams but would be affected by dam removal, have also featured prominently in recent discussions.
TIMES RECORD • October 15, 2024
During the early years of her sons’ lives, Becky Hallowell watched them climb trees and play in the backyard. Coming from a family of educators and being a fourth-grade teacher at Wiscasset Elementary School herself, she believed that her boys’ “innate wonder” would be nurtured in the public school system. She plans to use her 2025 Maine Teacher of the Year platform to “demystify nature-based play,” emphasizing that one does not need a nearby river estuary to take students outdoors.
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 15, 2024
Re: the recent Press Herald article discussing rockweed harvesting and conservation. Contrary to the claim that Seeley alone pushed for a conservation plan, it was actually the rockweed harvesting industry that proposed the development of the 2014 Fisheries Management Plan (FMP) for rockweed to the state. The industry has consistently supported sustainable rockweed management and advocated for regulations outlined in the FMP, including sector management, harvest quotas and closed areas. However, the unresolved issue of intertidal ownership, prior to Maine Supreme Court’s 2019 Ross decision, and the resulting decision from the Ross case to privatize a marine organism, hindered the state’s ability to manage the fishery effectively. ~ Jake Patryn, Maine Rockweed Fisheries Alliance, Machias
MAINE MORNING STAR • October 15, 2024
The food wasted in Maine annually emits as much greenhouse gas as 398,235 cars driven for one year. That equates to 361,000 tons — or about 520 pounds for every person in the state — of wasted and lost food every year, based on a first-of-its-kind study. The majority of Maine’s food waste is generated in households, particularly in the southern part of the state. Aroostook County is the highest contributor of agricultural waste. Commercial food waste — largely from grocery stores and food manufacturing — makes up most of the rest. Seasonal industries and tourism drive up waste in the summer months. Maine’s population surges from 1.3 million to 15 million during that period bringing more people to feed and more waste. A draft version of the State’s updated climate plan published earlier this summer includes cutting food waste and loss in half by 2030. The study also provides more information for potential legislation.
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 15, 2024
The administration of Gov. Janet Mills has reaffirmed its support of Sears Island as the preferred site for Maine’s wind port, saying it will cost nearly $100 million less to build there than at the next-best location. The state Department of Transportation recently released a draft report that explains why it considers Sears Island the best of 23 possible locations for the wind port. An opponent of the Sears Island site and a member of an advisory offshore wind group said he and at least one other group member were not alerted to the report and called it a “failure of process.”
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 15, 2024
I have a friend who recently told me that Kamala Harris is not green enough for him, and that he would, therefore, be voting for the Green Party candidate. I told him that any Green vote, not for Harris, was essentially a vote for Trump. He harrumphed, but said he’d think about it. I hope he does. ~ Bill Matthews, Kennebunkport
FORECASTER • October 14, 2024
The Greater Portland Council of Governments is implementing an initiative to help Casco Bay communities threatened by coastal erosion. Over the next two years, the council will work with project partners on educating municipalities on coastal bluff erosion, designing erosion mitigation plans and coastal bluff mapping. The project received a $350,000 grant through the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s Coastal Resilience Fund. “Things that could potentially accelerate erosion: sea-level rise, increased storm intensity, variable changing temperature in the winter,” said Gretchen Anderson, the council’s sustainability program coordinator. “It’s all the heavy hitters, if you will, of climate change that will impact this problem.”
TIMES RECORD • October 14, 2024
The Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association has partnered with Moderation Brewing Company to create a new beer — the Hook, Line & Lager — to support local fisheries. Philip Welsh and Mattie Daughtry, co-founders of Moderation Brewing, said they stand by the philosophy of “working with independent businesses and farmers.” Kat Libby, MCFA’s director of development, deemed the collab a win for beer lovers and industrial athletes alike, expressing her excitement to “raise a pint in support of Maine’s fishermen.”
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • October 14, 2024
It’s the week of the moose permit lottery, and Maine hunters are waiting with bated breath for the results to come out on Saturday at 5:30 p.m. The first week of the moose season started on Sept. 23 in several zones in the fall of 2024. Maine began sponsoring a moose hunt in 1980 and it has turned into a tradition for those in search of quality meat and maybe an impressive set of trophy antlers. Here is the Maine moose hunt timeline.
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • October 14, 2024
An adult hiker was seriously injured Thursday, Oct. 10, after she fell roughly 25 feet from Harpswell’s Cliff Trail onto a rocky intertidal area, local officials said. The woman had been hiking the trail, behind the Harpswell Town Office, when she fell from the cliff above Long Reach. The woman, whom officials didn’t name, was loaded onto the airboat and transported to Princes Point Landing, in Brunswick, where a waiting ambulance rushed her to Maine Medical Center, in Portland.
CBS 13 • October 14, 2024
A 30-million-dollar project to improve water quality in the Androscoggin River is coming to Lewiston. This Wednesday, the Lewiston Auburn Clean Water Authority will break ground on a 30-million-dollar infrastructure project that they say will improve public health and the cleanliness of the Androscoggin River. Mike Riley with the Department of Environmental Protection says the purpose is to help prevent pollution in the Androscoggin River during heavy rainstorms. “Sewer systems that are combined, meaning they handle both wastewater and storm water, can be overwhelmed by these big storms. Storage helps to capture that water before it gets to the river and they’re able to treat it and release it to the river in much better condition,” said Riley.
