Westbrook group pitches a new splash pad for kids

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • June 25, 2025

Friends of the Cornelia Warren Outdoor Recreation Area released results of its privately-funded survey that sought what residents would like for improvements. The survey showed 75% of 451 respondents favored a splash pad, “if taxes are not affected.” Federal and local funds could be available for improvements without local property tax money, but a city official Tuesday indicated improvements at the recreation area would be complicated. Warren and Fraser fields, both located within the Cornelia Warren Outdoor Recreation Area, are considered by Maine Department of Environmental Protection to be Tier III PFAS sites. Sludge had been previously applied to the fields.

Maine’s local bluefin fishery is healthy and sustainable, experts say

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • June 25, 2025

Bluefin tuna is one of the Gulf of Maine’s most prized resources, coveted by chefs and savvy home cooks for its superior flavor, high fat content and culinary versatility. Because it’s the most prized of the tuna species, bluefin is more expensive than yellowfin or bigeye. Demand for Gulf of Maine bluefin tuna has been growing. And local bluefin experts and sustainability authorities want you to know there are more than enough bluefin to meet that demand. In the late 1990s, Western Atlantic bluefin tuna stock assessments showed that the fishery was down as much as 90 percent from its numbers in 1970; Eastern Atlantic bluefin harvested off the Mediterranean were suffering as well. There was talk at the time of listing bluefin as an endangered species. A 20-year rebuilding plan enacted in 1998 by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas helped bolster bluefin stock on both sides of the Atlantic.

New laws will help Hancock County towns take over Bucksport-area dams

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • June 25, 2025

A group of towns in Hancock County is making plans to take ownership of two dams that a scrap metal company wants to get rid of. This month the Legislature approved, and Gov. Janet Mills signed into law, three bills that are aimed at allowing quasi-municipal watershed management districts to be formed to own and maintain dams on Alamoosook Lake and Toddy Pond. The towns that surround these lakes — Orland, Blue Hill, Surry and Penobscot — have been worried since last summer that the company that owns the dams could just abandon the properties, risking a severe reduction of water levels.

Letter: Collins should stand up for green energy

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • June 25, 2025

Sen. Susan Collins’ political party has been taken over by people who want to further enrich themselves during the next few years. They want to stop the development of green energy and make us depend even more on fossil fuels, even though this would doom future generations to weather disasters. It will take a great deal of political courage to vote against this budget, to tell these men they cannot take our tax dollars and keep doing these things. And yet this is what we need Collins to do. ~ Richard Thomas, Waterville

A Bangor heat record was melted on Tuesday

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • June 24, 2025

Bangor’s high-temperature record for June 24 had stood for 30 years, but it didn’t stand a chance on Tuesday. The high of 98 degrees in the Queen City surpassed the old high mark of 93 degrees reached in 1995, 1975 and 1963.

Versant Power customers will see another rate increase next month

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • June 24, 2025

Versant Power customers will see their electricity bills rise slightly beginning July 1. The rate increase follows an earlier, larger increase that took effect in April. When the new rates go into effect, a typical residential customer in the Maine Public District who uses 500 kilowatt-hours per month will see a $2.80 increase to their monthly bill, Versant said. a typical residential customer in the Bangor Hydro District using 500 kWh per month is expected to see a 31-cent increase to their monthly bill. Versant, which is Maine’s second-largest electric utility, serves about 165,000 customers in northern and eastern Maine.

Part of former Jay paper mill to be waste processing site

SUN JOURNAL • June 24, 2025

A Bangor company is acquiring the landfill and wastewater treatment plant at the former Androscoggin Paper Mill. JayCo LLC has signed the documents to take over the site and is awaiting the transfer of permits, at which point the facility will become part of a statewide network of waste collection sites that feed a processing hub in Hampden operated by Municipal WasteHub, formerly known as the Municipal Review Committee. The nonprofit organization provides waste management services for about 115 Maine member municipalities. “We’ll use this site (Jay) for grinding wood debris and other environmental services, always keeping everything in state, with no out-of-state waste to be accepted,” Michael Carroll, executive director of Municipal WasteHub, wrote in an email.

Farm to Neighbor Maine Secures $99K Kendall Foundation Food Vision Prize

MORNING AG CLIPS • June 24, 2025

Farm to Neighbor Maine (F2N) has been awarded a $99,000 New England Food Vision Prize by the Henry P. Kendall Foundation. This significant award recognizes F2N’s innovative work, “Growing Collaborative Menu and Crop Planning with Maine School Nutrition Directors and Farmers,” which aims to enhance regional food sourcing by Maine’s K-12 cafeterias. Portland-based nonprofit Cultivating Community (a member of the F2N collaborative), is the fiscal sponsor for the award.

Maine Ranked 8th Best State for Outdoor Enthusiasts

SMILEHUB • June 24, 2025

Outdoor activities from water sports to searching for geocaches to hunting provide a wide range of benefits for states and their citizens. For individuals, being in nature boosts their physical and mental health. For states, the presence of outdoor activities provides an economic benefit, while also helping preserve natural areas through increased participation in conservation efforts. SmileHub compared each of the 50 states based on 18 key metrics. Outdoor Activity Friendliness of Maine (1=Best, 25=Ave):
• Overall Rank: 8th
• 10th - Outdoor Recreation Economic Impact
• 4th - Air Pollution
• 14th - Share of Adults Reporting No Leisure Time Physical Activity
• 26th - National Parks per Capita
• 1st - Camping Spots per Capita

Opinion: Maine’s ocean potential is vast if science leads the conversation

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • June 24, 2025

The ocean is the next battleground for so many projects including large-scale industrial aquaculture, offshore wind, and climate change. Embedded in all these conversations is what we want to produce and how we want to do it in our oceans. What are the impacts from any and all of these proposed projects? Maine likes to create task forces, but rarely does it let science or long-term data reviewed by marine industry experts – meaning those people who make their living on the water, lead its decision making. Take for example the membership of the Blue Economy Task Force. Many of the appointees to the committee make money from industrial-scale aquaculture, whether its building, shipping or equity investment. Protect Maine, however, is a cheerleader for science. If Maine really wants to be a leader and not just an apologist for industrial-scale aquaculture, Protect Maine believes the state needs more science and unbiased participation in mapping the Maine ocean. We should be asking what the inputs from every vantage point are and what the impacts are. ~ Crystal Canney, Protect Maine’s Fishing Heritage Foundation

How Maine is impacted by Trump administration's plans to rescind rule blocking national forest logging

WMTW-TV8 • June 24, 2025

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced Monday that the Trump administration plans to rescind the Roadless Rule, which blocked logging on national forest lands for nearly 25 years. The Roadless Rule has affected 30% of national forest lands nationwide, or about 59 million acres. This includes the White Mountain National Forest. Part of that national forest is in western Maine bordered by communities such as Stow, Lovell, Stoneham, Bethel and Gilead. The White Mountain National Forest contains approximately 368,000 acres of inventoried roadless areas. The Roadless Rule has kept logging at bay on about 213,000 roadless acres, but the remaining 155,000 roadless acres are vulnerable to road construction and timber sales because they were identified later in the 2005 Forest Plan. The change marks a sharp turnaround from the Biden administration, which far from opening up more areas to timber harvesting sought to do more to restrict logging and protect old-growth forests.

Commentary: New England won’t be sacrificed to Big Oil

MAINE MORNING STAR • June 24, 2025

Do you remember the shocking images from the Exxon Valdez or Deepwater Horizon oil spills? The oil-slicked birds, the wrecked beaches, the empty fishing boats, and worst of all, the stories of lost lives? The Trump administration wants to bring polluting and dangerous oil and gas offshore drilling back — including to our New England shores. Trump claims the U.S. is in an “energy emergency.” We’re not. In fact, we’re producing more fossil fuels than ever before. This isn’t about energy security. It’s about handing over our ocean to polluters. This flimsy justification won’t hold up in court, which is why we’ve joined Earthjustice and many other environmental organizations to challenge it. ~ Erica Fuller, Conservation Law Foundation

If Energy Star goes away, finding energy efficient appliances will be harder

ASSOCIATED PRESS • June 24 2025

The Energy Star program claims that its blue seal of approval on efficient appliances saves households an average of $450 on their bills per year. Since its launch in 1992, Energy Star appliances have also prevented 4 billion metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions, the main cause of climate change. But the program’s future is unclear. The Environmental Protection Agency has announced an agency reorganization plan that would eliminate its Energy Star offices. That would make it more difficult for customers to find energy efficient appliances.

Opinion: An important tool can protect Maine from damaging tariffs

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • June 24, 2025

Recent trade policies — notably, tariffs on Canada — would increase prices on gasoline, energy resources and daily groceries. All products except those that fall under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada free trade agreement are subject to 25% tariffs. Then there are tariff-related trade tensions, which could drastically reduce Canadian tourism to our state. Maine businesses rely heavily on tourist activity. However, we have a tool to help offset the adverse effect of tariffs: The U.S. Foreign-Trade Zone (FTZ) program provides businesses that engage in international trade with the means to decrease overall costs and increase supply chain efficiency. In these zones, domestic and foreign merchandise is considered outside of U.S. Customs territory, so businesses can defer, reduce or eliminate customs duties on imported goods. Maine has four active FTZs. ~ Jim Dinkle, FirstPark, Oakland, Maine

Letter: Our public parks should not be for sale

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • June 24, 2025

When Republican President Ulysses S. Grant created the first national park at Yellowstone after the Civil War, he acted to “bind up the nation’s wounds” by creating such a commonwealth in the spirit of democracy, owned by and open to all. I was blessed to grow up camping in national parks and forests, learning from them a citizen’s pride in our country and a desire to protect them. This led to my career in ecosystem protection and renewal. I’ve seen how our national park system is a model internationally. Our national parks and lands are not only the commonwealth of every citizen, but are economic engines for their neighboring communities. To “release” these to private industry would essentially be theft, a betrayal of trust that would wound the spiritual heart of America, diminishing our health and prosperity, our climate and environment, our unity as Americans, all while setting a disastrous example worldwide for those countries that still look to us for leadership. ~ Carol Kamala Kinsey, Stockton Springs

Opinion: Efforts to connect more Mainers to nature deserve our appreciation and support

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • June 24, 2025

As leaders of two statewide conservation organizations, we’ve been dismayed recently to see some pointed criticism of the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife’s (DIFW) outreach initiatives. Breaking down barriers that have limited who partakes in Maine’s outdoor heritage is good, both ecologically and economically. DIFW has prioritized introducing more Mainers from all backgrounds to outdoor pursuits. Under the leadership of Commissioner Judy Camuso and her team, we have seen the effects of these efforts in many ways, in all corners of the state. While hunting license sales have declined nearly 10 percent nationally since 2018, they have jumped 7 percent in Maine over the same period. And while fishing license sales are stagnant nationally, they have increased over 6 percent in Maine. Maine boasts one of the nation’s highest participation rates of women in hunting and fishing. ~ Andy Beahm, Maine Audubon, and Kate Dempsey, The Nature Conservancy in Maine

Column: That loud bird is probably not a great blue heron

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • June 23, 2025

Somewhere in Maine, a few folks are about to get a big surprise. Nobody expects a sandhill crane to show up in their yard, until suddenly one does. Sandhill cranes are about the same size and shape as great blue herons. They both have long necks and long legs. The similarity ends there. Great blue herons nest in trees, often in colonies containing multiple nests. They feed almost exclusively on fish and other aquatic life. Sandhill cranes nest on the ground in marshy areas. They are omnivorous. Cranes fly with their necks straight out. Herons fly with their necks coiled in. Cranes stalk around fields. Herons pose motionless, waiting for unwary prey to approach them. As their population continues to grow, I expect them to keep showing up. Nonetheless, despite increasing numbers, sandhill cranes are still unusual in Maine. ~ Bob Duchesne

Janet Mills faces hecklers at Maine moose permit lottery drawing

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • June 23, 2025

Gov. Janet Mills was in her hometown of Farmington on Saturday to announce the winners of Maine’s annual moose hunt permit lottery, but the process became a bit testy when she encountered hecklers who booed and shouted at her. “We have daughters,” one member of the audience under a tent at the Farmington Fairgrounds shouted. “I have five daughters,” Mills said. “Stand up for them,” an attendee replied, as part of an apparent reference to Maine’s policies allowing transgender girls to compete in female sports that drew attention this year after President Donald Trump began targeting Maine over the matter.

Trump to rescind "Roadless Rule" which protects 58 million acres of forest land

NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO • June 23, 2025

The Trump administration is rolling back a landmark conservation rule that prevents roadbuilding and logging on roughly 58 million acres of federal forest and wildlands including 6,000 ares in Maine in the White Mountains National Forest. The announcement rescinding the 2001 Roadless Rule comes as the Forest Service is under orders by President Trump to increase logging.

Environmental advocates urge Congress to protect clean energy tax credits

MAINE PUBLIC • June 23, 2025

Environmental advocates are calling on Congress to preserve clean energy tax credits, which are facing severe cuts in the big, beautiful bill. Lucy Hochschartner with Maine Conservation Voters said uncertainty in Washington is already affecting Maine clean energy projects and jobs. "It targets wind, solar, battery and home energy upgrades that are helping millions of people save money and lower emissions here in Maine," she said. "Cean energy isn't just about climate. It's about jobs, it's about health and it's about keeping our energy dollars here at home." Hochschartner said the cuts would drive up Maine energy costs at a time when the state already has some of the highest energy prices in the country.