Letter: Matt Dunlap is the best choice for sportsmen

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • October 24, 2026

Maine’s outdoor heritage is one of our greatest treasures. As a sportsman, I want our elected officials to preserve the outdoors and advocate for hunters and fishermen. That’s why I support Matt Dunlap for Congress. Matt Dunlap served as the executive director of the Sportsmen’s Alliance of Maine (SAM) and expanded membership. He also received an A+ rating from SAM. As a state representative, Matt served as House chair on the Committee on Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, where he wrote the bill for lifetime hunting licenses and fought for an expanded season for bow hunting. ~ Roger Corrow, Bangor

Trump administration to exempt Canadian products used by Maine farmers from tariffs

MAINE PUBLIC • October 23, 2026

The Trump administration is creating tariff exemptions for Canadian products important to some agricultural sectors in Maine, according to Sen. Susan Collins. The exemptions announced on Friday will apply to nine categories of products, some of which are important to blueberry and apple growers, potato farmers and seaweed producers in Maine. But the announcement immediately became fodder for Maine's closely watched U.S. Senate race as Democrats accused Collins of seeking to mitigate economic damage that she helped to cause.

Crayola among companies failing to disclose toxins in kids products

MAINE PUBLIC • October 23, 2026

Crayon maker Crayola is among manufacturers of products for children that failed to tell Maine regulators their goods contained toxic chemicals as required by state law, according to Portland-based nonprofit Defend Our Health. Defend our Health Executive Director Emily Carey Perez de Alejo said Crayola did not disclose that some of its art supplies including markers and finger paint used formaldehyde as a preservative.

Man rescued after getting stuck in mud by Newport’s Sebasticook Lake

CENTRAL MAINE • October 23, 2026

A duck hunter was rescued from deep mud by Sebasticook Lake in Newport on Friday afternoon. Newport Fire Chief Jeff Chretien said the man walked out on the lake bed to retrieve a duck he had shot when he became stuck. The man was stuck for about an hour, Chretien estimated. There were no injuries — “just pride,” he said.

Orland campground owner fined $8K over substandard waste piping

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • October 23, 2026

The owners of an Orland campground have been ordered this month to pay $8,000 in fines over 20 campsites that violated town development ordinances. The owners of Wanderin’ Moose Campground, which sits on the shore of Toddy Pond in Hancock County, have been in a multi-year dispute with the town of Orland after adding 20 unsanctioned campsites that were not part of their original approved site plan. The town alleged that the campground violated local laws about cutting down shoreland-adjacent trees and installing professionally-graded sanitary waste piping and electrical hook ups.

Opinion: Maine’s working waters are not dumping grounds for foreign corporations

SUN JOURNAL • October 23, 2026

Before leases are renewed or industrial salmon farming expands, we call on the commissioner of the Department of Marine Resources and the next governor and Maine Legislature to enforce stronger accountability, transparency and public input. The burden should not fall on coastal residents to prove harm after the fact. Companies operating in public waters should face strong monitoring, clear reporting and real enforcement from the start, with that information easily accessible so communities can see what is being discharged, what regulators are tracking and how they are responding. Protections for our waters only matter if they are enforced. ~ Rock Alley, Jonesport lobsterman and president of Protect Maine’s Fishing Heritage Foundation; Jason Faulkingham, lobsterman from Beals

Farmington hears solar savings pitch, weighs other options

SUN JOURNAL • October 23, 2026

The Select Board took no action Oct. 13 on a proposal by a community solar company, renewing concerns about municipal involvement in promoting a private company’s services. Solar Simplified, of Chicago, Illinois, presented a potential partnership offering eligible Central Maine Power customers a 15% discount on applied solar credits without installing solar panels or changing electricity providers. The company would also contribute $100 to the town for each enrolled household or business. Selectman Randall Gauvin questioned whether participating in the company’s outreach campaign would amount to a municipal endorsement of a private business.

E-bikes now rival motorcycles for speed. State and city laws haven’t caught up.

MAINE MORNING STAR • October 23, 2026

A string of high-profile deaths and injuries involving electric scooters and bikes is spurring states and cities across the country to crack down on them. As technology improves, e-scooters and e-bikes capable of motorcycle-like speeds have become cheaper and more popular. Some models — and the ability to modify them with aftermarket upgrades — are blurring the lines between bicycles, scooters and motor vehicles. State and local regulations, many of which were originally written to manage the glut of low-speed rideshare scooters nearly a decade ago, haven’t kept pace, some experts say, and they’ve left city officials scrambling to do more.

At Acadia, a missing Wabanaki marker and the fight over what national parks should tell

ASSOCIATED PRESS • October 23, 2026

There is one sign the other 4 million-plus tourists who visit Acadia National Park annually can no longer see at the summit of Cadillac Mountain: a marker explaining the mountain’s sacred significance to the Wabanaki people in the region. “Today, visitors from everywhere find meaning on the mountain,” it said. It was among 30 markers removed from Acadia under a Trump administration campaign to strip national parks of materials deemed disparaging to American history. When park staff took down the summit sign at the orders of Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, they also unraveled some of the trust that took decades to build between Acadia National Park and the Wabanaki people. Other signs removed from Cadillac’s summit addressed issues of climate change.

With Gorham farm for sale, owner, employees reflect on 5 years

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 23, 2026

Erica Gottshalk and her husband, Will, announced Sunday that they will sell the 38-acre farm about nine months after a fire destroyed their family’s 1858 house on the property, prompting an outpouring of community support. They have put it on the market for nearly $1.7 million after five years of ownership. Losing her home was not the primary reason she decided to move on, Gottshalk said. She said she has accomplished what she set out to do when she took over in 2021 — transforming the farm into a community space —but it has become too challenging to manage alone.

Saco seeking community input as city creates open space plan

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 23, 2026

The city of Saco is embarking on an effort to create an open space plan — and wants residents to weigh in.Working in tandem with the Saco Conservation Commission, the plan will guide how Saco cares for, connects and expands the outdoor places that contribute to the community’s environment and quality of life. A public interactive listening session next week will provide an opportunity for community members to learn more about the plan and share their ideas, priorities, concerns and experiences. The session will begin at 6 p.m. Tuesday in the Deering Room at Dyer Public Library.

Maine Forest Products special section

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • October 23, 2026

In Maine’s forest products industry, no two days are the same.

The renovated Maine State Museum opens Saturday. Here’s what’s new.

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 22, 2026

Six years after shutting its doors for renovations, the Maine State Museum is ready to welcome the public back to its upgraded facility and showcase the state’s history through brand-new exhibits. The two skeletons are surrounded by interactive and educational displays that provide information about the lives of humpback whales in the Gulf of Maine. The exhibit also features the jaw and flipper bones of a right whale, an endangered species, that died from entanglement. “These are important ecological stories,” Museum Director Bernard Fishman said. Visitors can learn about Cornelia Thurza “Fly Rod” Crosby, the first registered Maine Guide, and stories from Maine’s history, like the first registered snowmobile in the state and a Lombard Log Hauler, a vehicle invented and manufactured in Maine for hauling logs.

Bethel approves 6-month data center moratorium

SUN JOURNAL • October 22, 2026

At a special town meeting Oct. 15, about two dozen Bethel voters approved a six-month moratorium on data centers. Among the reasons listed for the moratorium proposal were that centers consume disproportionate amounts of water and electrical energy and result in an increase in residential utility costs, and they can create noise pollution, heat islands and significant environmental impact.

Avid birders flock to Cape Elizabeth after rare grey heron sighted

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 22, 2026

A grey heron was seen for the first time in Maine on Sunday, Oct. 18. To the uninitiated, it looks like a great blue heron, its distant relative. But grey herons, which are native to Europe, Africa and Asia, have white on the bend of their wings and thighs. Their more common counterparts have rusty red accents. Grey herons are daintier and more compact, with shorter legs and smaller bills. They are incredibly rare, especially on this continent.

Officials brief public on pilot program to clean up mercury in Penobscot River

MAINE PUBLIC • October 23, 2026

Members of the public received an update Wednesday night on efforts to clean up mercury pollution on the Penobscot river in Orrington. Over the next year, the Penobscot Estuary Remediation Trust said it will monitor a 6-acre pilot effort to cap contaminated sediment and proceed with another test of removing some contaminated sediment to determine if it can be treated and reused. Maine People’s Alliance and Natural Resources Defense Council sued Mallinckrodt more than two decades ago for contaminating the river at its HoltraChem site in Orrington. The contaminated material is now found throughout areas in the southern part of the river. The settlement included nearly $270 million dollars to fund the cleanup. Remediation efforts are going to take a long time.

Column: Finding purpose by following a Maine stone wall forgotten by time

TIMES RECORD • October 22, 2026

Stone walls in Midcoast Maine are as ubiquitous to our forests as lobster boats are to our harbors. You don’t have to search far to find one. I cross the street that runs by my house on Youngs Point in Wiscasset, step into the woods, and there it is. This is but one of several stone walls located on the 200-acre Eaton Farm Preserve. The land was once used for growing hay and grazing sheep and cows. Given its proximity to the Back River and its mudflats, it was and still is used for clamming and worm digging. At the time when many of these stone walls were built, it was common for them to be part of a complete fence that included wood. When the property was later abandoned as a working farm, the wood would eventually rot away leaving just the stone walls. ~ Patrick Sandefur, Wiscasset

Fact brief: Are fake spiderweb decorations dangerous to birds and other animals?

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 22, 2026

Yes. Fake spiderweb decorations can entangle birds and other wildlife, sometimes causing serious injuries or death. Animals caught in the synthetic fibers may be unable to free themselves, leaving them vulnerable to predators, exhaustion and starvation. Experts recommend only using artificial webs indoors. Outdoor displays should avoid flight paths, trees and shrubs.

Access nature with these 5 new accessible Maine trails

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 22, 2026

Many Mainers like to spend time outdoors on the state’s thousands of trails. Increasingly, more of these trails are being built so that people using wheelchairs, pushing strollers, and with other mobility devices or disabilities can use them, too. Here are five accessible trails that opened within the past year for you to explore.
• All Persons Trail, Gilsland Farm Audubon Center, Falmouth
• Alewive Access Trail, West Kennebunk
• Universal Access Trail, Windham Community Forest
• Andy’s Trail, Woodward Point, Brunswick
• All-persons trail, Castner Brook Community Forest, Damariscotta

Federal fuel relief offered to Maine farmers and fishermen

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 21, 2026

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is launching an $8 billion fuel relief program that offers a one-time cash payment to help food producers manage the strain of high diesel prices and rising operating expenses. The Harvest Relief program breaks ground as the first federal bailout to extend emergency fuel aid to fishermen as well as farmers, according to USDA. It comes at a time when the dock price of lobster remains static.