Column: Maine streams are changing right now. Here’s what trout are doing.

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • April 29, 2026

By April, trout are beginning to look upward, having awakened from their semi-dormant state and willing to rise to a hatching bug or a hook wound with a bit of fur or fluff if drifted with skill. I often wonder if more of us spent time along the bank of a stream or in a field of wildflowers there would be less strife in the world. If only we could appreciate those simple gifts found just outside our door, we might be more willing to set aside our prejudices, less inclined to dredge up old grievances, make war. ~ Bob Romano

EPA Announces $468,000 to Protect Waterways from Sewage Overflows in Maine

ENVIRONMENAL PROTECTION AGENCY • April 29, 2026

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the availability of approximately $80 million through the Sewer Overflow and Stormwater Reuse Municipal Grant program to help communities address stormwater and sewer infrastructure needs. These grants will strengthen systems that safely capture and manage stormwater to help prevent contaminants, including untreated sewage, from polluting nearby waterways. The agency will provide funding from both fiscal years 2025 and 2026 totaling $468,000 to Maine, which will be awarded to communities here.

One night a year, humans command this march of frogs and salamanders

GRIST • April 29, 2026

On a Tuesday night in April, beneath a sky mottled with clouds, a slick stretch of road in Cumberland, Maine, erupted in sound. It started with a few high-pitched chirps, like the coos of chicks. Within minutes, dozens, then hundreds more joined a chorus punctuated by low clucks. By the time the sun dipped below the horizon and rain began to splatter the pavement, the sound had risen to a din. Cars stopped on the shoulder and people spilled onto the road wearing neon vests and waving bright flashlights. They fanned out, and raised their voices as they spoke, like guests at a bustling cocktail party. “I got a big one!” called a youngster in a yellow raincoat. She held out her hand for other volunteers who crowded around her. A yellow-spotted salamander about 9 inches long stretched across her gloved palm, its slick tail draped between her fingers.

Maine’s Environment in the 2026 Legislative Session: Progress & Outcomes

NATURAL RESOURCES COUNCIL OF MAINE • April 29, 2026

The Natural Resources Council of Maine (NRCM) works with people and organizations across Maine to advance progress on climate action, land conservation and wildlife protection, cleaner air and water, and holding polluters accountable for the waste they create. Here’s a breakdown of how we made a difference for Maine’s environment.

Wiscasset farm sold to new owners, preserving it as farmland

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • April 29, 2026

A Wiscasset farm has changed hands, with the new owners vowing to preserve it as a working farm. Chris and Terry Baldwin, along with their in-laws the Esbjergs, bought the property on April 10 from the Maine Farmland Trust. Maine Farmland Trust purchased Morris Farm for $300,000 and later sold it to the Baldwins at its appraised value, said Emily Lad, assistant director of engagement for Maine Farmland Trust. The previous owner, Morris Farm Trust, encouraged the Maine Farmland Trust to purchase the property in early 2025 before the restrictive covenant expired, which prevented development projects for different uses other than farmland.

Maine Legislature sustains Mills’ data center moratorium veto

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • April 29, 2026

Lawmakers in the Maine House of Representatives failed to secure the necessary two-thirds majority to overturn Gov. Janet Mills veto of a bill that would have been the country’s first statewide pause on large data center development. Wednesday’s potential votes in the House and Senate marked the last glimmer of hope for the long-debated measure after the governor rejected it late last week. The measure would have prohibited new permits from being issued for data center projects of at least 20 megawatts. Though a majority of members voted to overturn the veto, the total fell short of the two-thirds threshold required.

Portland approves $10 million Jetport parking expansion

MAINE PUBLIC • April 29, 2026

The city of Portland has approved $10.1 million for expanded jetport parking. Jetport officials have been searching for more than two years for a way to add more parking at the airport to accommodate a growing number travelers. But last fall, the city council rejected a plan to expand surface lots in response to pushback from environmental advocacy groups and Jetport neighbors. Under the new plan, the Jetport will pave over a gravel lot and bring another existing surface parking lot up to current standards, for a total of 537 spaces. The lots are smaller than what was previously proposed.

Turkey hunting requires silence. She’s bringing a toddler.

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • April 29, 2026

Opening day for turkey season is coming up. Youth day is Friday and Saturday, and the general season opens May 4. Emilie Cram will be out this season with her toddler Alice. It’s her second year bringing her daughter along. Alice joined Emilie and her husband, Will, on a hunt just 10 days after she was born. How do you keep a toddler quiet when you’re trying to get a tom into range? Snacks.

Opinion: The days after Earth Day are just as important

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • April 28, 2026

Another Earth Day has come and gone. River, beach and city park cleanups have taken place; speeches have been made; and politicians have offered their obligatory support for the natural world. Yet across the country, so much of what makes America great is under threat. Powerful special interests wield far too much influence over our democracy, and constitutional freedoms— like the ability to speak out in public — are being challenged in ways we haven’t seen for years. America’s national parks, national monuments and other public lands are now squarely in the crosshairs of the administration and its cynical efforts to hand over control of our shared heritage to some of the most powerful corporations in the world — all at the expense of our freedom to roam the great outdoors. The days after Earth Day are when Mainers must call on our elected leaders and remind them that protecting America’s public lands is what truly makes our country great. ~ Jeremy Sheaffer, Maine state director, The Wilderness Society

Wells homeowners illegally impeded neighbors’ riverfront access, court rules

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • April 28, 2026

A Maine court has sided with a group of Wells neighbors in a lawsuit over the construction of a fence and a driveway that they say have impeded their access to the Webhannet River. In an April 21 decision, the Maine Supreme Judicial Court overturned an earlier decision by the York County Superior Court and remanded the case back to the lower court. In accordance with the opinion issued by Justice Andrew Mead, the case will go back to the Superior Court for further proceedings, including to hear the neighbors’ request for the fence to be taken down.

How Janet Mills’ data center veto reverberated around the country

CENTRAL MAINE • April 28, 2026

When Maine seemed poised to pass the nation’s first temporary ban on new data center development, the country started to pay attention. Gov. Janet Mills shot down the measure, LD 307, late last week. Critics — including environmental advocates and other political figures — were quick to condemn the move. Some prominent members of her own party said they would have made a different call. But others, including labor unions and developers eyeing Maine, praised Mills for taking a stand for local interests amid national scrutiny. The move could have major political ramifications for Mills, who is badly trailing political newcomer Graham Platner in the race for the chance to unseat Republican incumbent Susan Collins.

Kingfield to hear public comments on Bowdoin campsite

SUN JOURNAL • April 28, 2026

The Kingfield Planning Board will hold a public hearing May 7 to take input from residents on an application for Bowdoin College’s proposed campsite at the Finnegan McCoul Woodruff Mountain Center. According to Bowdoin’s Outing Club, students will use the space for excursions to the nearby mountains and rivers in the summer and fall months. The 20.7-acre site will feature seven gravel campsites, a pavilion, parking and other spaces set aside for future development. Some residents have been vocal about the increase in traffic on the roads into the site, saying that the school should bear more responsibility in funding the upkeep of the infrastructure used to access the property.

'Incredibly disappointed' - environment group, bill sponsor dismayed at veto of data center ban

MAINE PUBLIC • April 27, 2026

Supporters of what would have been the nations first statewide pause on large-scale data centers are dismayed by Governor Janet Mills' veto of the measure. "We're incredibly disappointed," said Sarah Woodbury, legislative director at Maine Conservation Voters. "The data center issue is not going to go away, and by vetoing this bill, it basically leaves Maine open to allowing these facilities to come in here, and impact our economy and our environment," Woodbury said in an interview.

Chellie Pingree seeks to amend Farm Bill to remove protections for pesticide producers

MAINE PUBLIC • April 27, 2026

U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree of Maine's 1st District is spearheading an effort to amend the draft Farm Bill by removing what she said are legal protections for large pesticide producers. At a rally in Washington, D.C., on Monday, Pingree said the bill's current language would override state and local warning label laws for potentially harmful products. Pingree called out the German company Bayer, a major producer of the chemical glyphosate, which some experts have linked to harmful health effects. "They have 53 well-paid lobbyists and are spending millions of dollars lobbying Congress," Pingree said to a crowd of activists. "And that's not to make their products safer. No, it's to protect themselves." The rally was in advance of the U.S. Supreme Court hearing oral arguments on a case that could determine the fate of thousands of lawsuits linking the Bayer herbicide "Roundup" to causing cancer.

Opinion: Maine fishing must be central to our national food framework

MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • April 26, 2026

The reality is that fishing is food production, and what fishermen produce is some of the best food you can eat. Yet, while our neighbors in the heartland have long benefited from the robust support of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, our fishermen have been left to navigate a different, often more precarious, path. Now is the time to bridge that gap and fully integrate seafood into our national food framework. When we build a stronger supply chain here at home, we aren’t just helping fishermen, we’re making sure Maine and the rest of the country can feed itself. ~ Ben Martens, Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association

Portlanders mark Earth Day by cleaning up city parks, neighborhoods

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • April 25, 2026

During an Earth Day cleanup event hosted by Portland Parks Conservancy and the City of Portland at 18 locations across the city volunteers took to the streets and sidewalks, ditches and pond banks.

Column: In early spring, look forward to song of thrushes

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • April 25, 2026

Bird songs are filling the landscape as we progress through spring and migrating songbirds return to their breeding grounds. Songs can range from simple and short, like the loud clear paired whistles of a tufted titmouse, to long and complex, like the bubbly musical trills from a winter wren. One of the families that I look forward to the most, as their sounds return and fill the forests, is the thrushes. In Maine, we have seven breeding species of thrushes. ~ Maine Audubon Staff Naturalist Doug Hitchcox 

What to expect at Acadia and Maine’s state parks this year

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • April 24, 2026

The biggest change at Acadia National Park this year is for foreign tourists. An America The Beautiful Pass, which covers entrance fees at many national parks and federal lands, jumped to $250 for non-U.S. residents in 2026. The pass will still cost $80 for U.S. citizens and residents. Foreign visitors who do not have that pass will need to pay an extra $100 per person on top of the standard entrance fee to get into the 11 busiest national parks, including Acadia. Current daily entrance fees for Acadia range from $20 to $35. Baxter State Park introduced a change to its reservation system for 2026. Now, campers will be able to book four consecutive nights at the same site online. Reservations across the12 state campgrounds managed by the Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands have been strong. Two campgrounds that were closed last year for upgrades — Aroostook State Park and Cobscook Bay State Park — will be open again.

Emerald ash borer detected in southern Aroostook County, far from where it’s usually found in Maine

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • April 24, 2026

An invasive species was found in southern Aroostook County trees this month, far north and south of where the species is known to be in Maine. A logger reported a tree in Benedicta that they suspected was infested with an emerald ash borer this month and their presence has since been confirmed, the Maine Forest Service said in a notice Friday. The invasive species can injure and kill ash trees and cause them to become brittle, and the agency considers them “one of the most serious invasive species threatening our forests.” The emerald ash borer is a small wood-boring beetle from Asia that invaded North America via transported wood, according to the Forest Service, and was first detected in Maine in 2018. Most of southern and central Maine, and part of northern Aroostok County, are considered quarantine areas, meaning ash wood should not be transported outside those areas.

Body of lobsterman recovered in Down East bay

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • April 23, 2026

A lobsterman’s body was found in a Down East bay Wednesday morning after he was reported missing the night prior. Thomas West, 63, of Steuben, was found dead in Dyer Bay near his 35-foot lobster boat, according to a news release from the Maine Marine Patrol. Local fishermen reported West missing Tuesday evening after his boat, named Aces and Eights, was found running with no one aboard. Marine Patrol searched for him through the night but suspended the search around 2:30 a.m. because of low visibility, according to the release. His family found his body around 6 a.m. near the boat, which was moored near a wharf on Merritt Road in Steuben.