The most comprehensive online source of conservation news and events in Maine and beyond, edited by Jym St. Pierre
MAINE ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS • November 10, 2025
Dr. Barry Logan, professor of Natural Sciences at Bowdoin College, presents the third in a series of six talks about Back Cove. Hosted by Osher Map Library. At University of Southern Maine, Glickman Family Library, November 15, 2025, 1-2:30 p.m.
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • November 10, 2025
It’s likely to be your average Maine winter. Forecasts by the National Weather Service call for routine winter temperatures, not too much hotter or colder than Mainers have come to expect between December and March. Precipitation is also expected to be about average, though if it teeters in one direction, it likely will be on the dry side.
SUN JOURNAL • November 10, 2025
Snowshoe clubs first emerged in 1925, the brainchild of journalist, sportsman and future Lewiston mayor Louis-Philippe Gagné. A recent immigrant, he wanted French Canadians and their Franco-American descendants to better know and understand one another. A proponent of snowshoe diplomacy, Gagné asserted that “…the most efficient diplomacy for good relationship […] and the best good-neighbor lie in a man-made product called a snowshoe. It makes you happy, healthy, and with it you become acquainted with the joy of living.” His hobby became a cultural movement that spread throughout the New England states and Canada. ~ Jonathan Gosnell, chair of French studies, Smith College
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • November 10, 2025
A new state program allows farmers to increase hunting on their land by giving them extra free permits to use or distribute. It reflects the threat that increasing deer populations are posing to Maine’s agricultural economy. The Deer Management Assistance Program through the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife offers the permits to commercial growers who are seeing significant crop damage from deer. Farmers said they believe it’s an overdue step in the right direction, but it’s going to take more than that to make a dent in the destruction.
DAILY BULLDOG • November 9, 2025
Between 2024 and 2025, the average electricity bill for Mainers jumped 36.3%. For the poorest Mainers, this isn’t an inconvenience — it’s a brutal choice between heat, food, or medicine. Maine’s affordability crisis didn’t just happen. It’s been the result of deliberate policy choices — and they’ve made electricity both more expensive and less reliable. The Governor and Legislature have prioritized wind and solar, though neither can affordably or reliably power our state. That is why we need an energy policy that prioritizes keeping the lights on and power the innovations that make our state successful. Without it, Mainers risk spending even more of their hard-earned money on high energy costs. ~ Matt Jacobsen, North Yarmouth
NEW ENGLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY • November 9, 2025
A feared backwoods trapper turned murderer vanished into the woods in western Maine 175 years ago, leaving behind bodies, panic, and a mystery that was never solved.
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • November 9, 2025
As golden hour descended over Wolfe’s Neck Center in Freeport late Saturday, Luke Myers geared up for his fourth time hosting a Climate Change Theatre Action event. Over the course of the early evening, a large group gathered to watch six live theatre productions, all centered around climate change. It was part of an initiative by Climate Change Theater Action, where around 50 playwrights from all over the world write short climate change plays to be shared in small productions. The productions always include a climate action element. “I think climate change is the biggest issue facing humanity for our lifetime,” Myers said.
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • November 9, 2025
A fire at the Irving Forest Products sawmill in Dixfield caused heavy damage to part of a building Saturday. No one was hurt. Irving Forest Products bought the Dixfield sawmill in 1998 and has invested more than $40 million into the mill. The Maine State Fire Marshal’s Office is investigating.
MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • November 9, 2025
After years of lawsuits and false starts, Portland has finally reclaimed the 3.25 acres known as the Midtown properties. This rare chance for a reset is a test of Portland’s resolve to build a community worthy of all the values we envision for our unique small city. We must prove on this last significant peninsula parcel of public land that we have learned from past mistakes of rushing to cede civic decisions to the balance-sheets of potential buyers. A park at Midtown would not displace anyone, but would anchor all the surrounding concentrated housing to sustain livability for generations. Smart growth serves the people. Portland does not have to pit one priority against another. With over 140,000 square feet back in citizen hands, we can create hundreds of new homes, while reserving some of our land for a public park in the most logical place. ~ Thomas Blackburn, Bayside Neighborhood Association, and Camelia Babson-Haley, Youth & Family Outreach
MAINE MONITOR • November 8, 2025
According to the National Weather Service, “overall conditions are still running significantly below normal, with most of the region running between 30 percent to 60 percent of normal” rainfall. Allyson Hill, the director of the Oxford County Emergency Management Association, said she has been hearing reports of homeowners refilling their wells from local water sources. Water gets into wells from the water table in the ground. It is then filtered through sand and clay and rocks. Dumping water into a well bypasses those natural filters, according to Hill, and can introduce bacteria and water into a home. “You should never pour,” Hill said. There is another complication looming. Once the ground freezes, drought conditions are usually locked in until spring because water cannot dissipate down to wells when the ground is frozen.
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • November 8, 2025
A project to build a new quarter-mile road to a site where the state plans to construct a new $55 million judicial center could lead to other improvements and developments around the courthouse site, Ellsworth officials said. A parking lot for the Down East Sunrise Trail could finally be built in Ellsworth near the new courthouse site. The nearest public parking for the roughly 90-mile trail, which extends east from Ellsworth to Pembroke in Washington County, currently is three miles away. The courthouse development also opens the possibility of building public access into the Card Brook wetland. If the city gets an easement on part of the state-owned courthouse property, it would look into building a boardwalk trail.
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • November 8, 2025
Technology is advancing so fast, it’s hard to keep up. Swarovski Optik’s new AX Visio binoculars use built-in GPS and image-recognition AI to know where you are and what you’re looking at. Supposedly, these new binoculars can identify 9000 bird species with reasonable accuracy. The binoculars cost over $5000 to identify a bird in your backyard. I’ll come over to your house and do it for half that price. Scientific advances are making a difference on the landscape, too. University of Missouri researchers are using drones and artificial intelligence to monitor migratory water birds more safely and accurately. BirdCast combines radar data with weather forecasts to predict migration waves. AI connected to BirdCast could automatically dim the lights on tall buildings to reduces mortality in migratory flyways. It could also power-down wind turbines. With modern tools, many people don’t need to sharpen their personal identification skills. Ultimately, AI can only do so much. ~ Bob Duchesne
SUN JOURNAL • November 7, 2025
Why would there be a dead bird in a bird house, especially with its eggs? Unfortunately, a common problem for cavity nesting species comes from competition with non-native species that also want to use those cavities, in this case, a bird house. The most common culprit is the house sparrow, also known as the “English sparrow” because they are an Old World species. They are very aggressive and will go into an occupied box and peck the adult bluebirds to death. Even native species will compete with bluebirds and sometimes show “agonistic behavior.” Should you be cleaning out your bird houses now? The easy answer is yes, clean them out and give birds a fresh start next year. Many parasites, especially mites, move into old nest material, so removing those is helpful. ~ Maine Audubon Staff Naturalist Doug Hitchcox
LIVERMORE FALLS ADVERTISER • November 7, 2025
I started when my treadmill broke, forcing me to head outside. What felt like an inconvenience turned out to be a blessing. Getting outdoors, breathing fresh air and soaking up natural vitamin D was far better than staring at a wall indoors. I noticed wildlife, the changing light through the trees, and a kind of calm I never got from a machine. Best of all, hiking and walking were free, saving me the cost of a new treadmill while giving me something much more valuable. Walking, jogging and hiking aren’t just for exercise. They improve cardiovascular health, lower blood pressure, strengthen the heart and support a healthy weight. Walking can also boost mood and mental health, helping to reduce stress and anxiety.
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • November 7, 2025
Scarborough is one step closer to becoming an officially designated “Tree City.” The Town Council voted Wednesday to adopt a tree care ordinance to regulate the planting, maintenance and removal of trees, shrubs and other plants on town property and public rights of way. The ordinance also establishes a Tree Care Advisory Board, a new body that will develop a list of desirable trees to plant, record and share tree planting information, support tree-related education programs and oversee Arbor Day activities.
MAINE ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS • November 7, 2025
There are more than 3,400 Tree Cities USA. To be a Tree City, the community must meet four standards set by the National Arbor Day Foundation and the National Association of State Foresters. The following communities in Maine have been designated Tree Cities USA: Augusta, Auburn, Bath, Bangor, Dover-Foxcroft, Farmington, Hampden, Kennebunkport, Portland, South Portland, Westbrook, Yarmouth.
MAINE MONITOR • November 7, 2025
Woodland Pulp announced to its employees on Tuesday that the company will pause manufacturing at its Baileyville pulp mill and wood chip plant from late November to mid-December. During that month-long hiatus, the company will temporarily lay off 144 employees at both facilities, said Woodland Pulp spokesperson Scott Beal. Woodland Pulp is Washington County’s largest employer, and the layoffs will apply to about one third of the mill workforce. Beal attributed the “extended downtime” to declining prices in the global pulp market. “The tariffs, the uncertainty with markets, pullback on consumption, all of these factors are impacting all of the facilities, including Woodland right now. It’s all kind of a perfect storm,” said Dana Doran, executive director of the industry group Professional Logging Contractors of the Northeast. Woodland Pulp is one of Maine’s last major mills.
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • November 7, 2025
As a keeper of eight dogs, I found the Oct. 28 op-ed (“Maine dog owners need to curb the unwanted baggage“) hilarious and objectionable. Hilarious mostly because of the photo that accompanied it. Upon searching the photo for evidence of dog owner irresponsibility, all I saw were discarded fast food containers. Human waste? Not dog waste. I am fed up with people who think that dog poop is a natural fertilizer to be left behind in nature. I regularly remind clueless dog people that what our dogs leave behind has no environmental value whatsoever. ~ Lisa Lane, Waldoboro
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • November 7, 2025
Extreme weather made for a hard year for Maine’s wild blueberry industry, and the season’s losses have leaders looking for emergency funds to help keep growers in business. Overall, growers brought in about 54.9 million pounds of berries this summer, “a pretty significant loss” that represents close to $30 million in estimated lost income, according to Eric Venturini, executive director of the Wild Blueberry Commission. Sen. Susan Collins earlier this week asked USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins to include Maine wild blueberry growers, apple orchards and hay farmers as it considers releasing emergency funding.
THE WILDERNESS SOCIETY • November 6, 2025
The Trump administration announced the nomination of former New Mexico Rep. Steve Pearce to lead the Bureau of Land Management yesterday, tapping an anti-public lands hardliner to lead the nation’s largest land management agency, which oversees some 245 million acres of public lands. Pearce has championed the sale of public lands, opposed the protection of national monuments (including in his home state), worked to protect oil and gas companies from paying higher royalties to taxpayers and suggested that he wants to reverse the “trend” of public land ownership.
