The most comprehensive online source of conservation news and events in Maine and beyond, edited by Jym St. Pierre
Thank you for reading Maine Environmental News. Each year, we post thousands of news summaries, notices, and links related to important environmental issues from across the state (and beyond). If you find this service useful, you can help us continue to provide it by making a donation. Just click on the button below and contribute whatever you can afford. Thanks again for your generous support!
Sincerely,
Jym St. Pierre
Editor, Maine Environmental News
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • September 11, 2025
Migrations are now tracked with powerful tools at our fingertips: The BirdCast Migration Dashboard uses radar to show in real time how many birds are flying overhead at night. eBird bar charts give a detailed record of when specific species usually depart, drawn from thousands of Maine birders submitting their sightings. The Motus Wildlife Tracking Network, supported locally by Maine Audubon, adds another layer — following individual radio-tagged birds across the continent. And the Bird Migration Explorer connects the dots between Maine birds and their wintering grounds in Central and South America. Together, these resources give us a clearer picture of when our birds come and go. Yet even with all the data, bird migration remains deeply personal. Perhaps the secret is to notice both ends of the migration journey — the joy of first arrivals and the bittersweet silence of final departures. ~ Bob Duchesne
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • September 11, 2025
You want to know why Canadians aren’t visiting Maine anymore? We’re done pretending that what’s happening south of our border is just politics. That we can separate “friendly neighbors” from the hostile rhetorWe’re not interested in being recruited, absorbed, or “saved.” We’re proud of our country.ic coming out of your leadership. When your president brags about taking over Canada by sabotaging our economy, that’s not just tough talk — it’s economic aggression. And then came the letter. A smug, condescending invitation from one of your own state senators, Joseph Martin, R-Rumford. He mocked our bilingualism, dismissed our parliamentary democracy, and treated our national identity like a failed experiment. We’re angry. We’re insulted. And we’re staying home. ~ Nicola Stefaniuk, Toronto, Ontario
MAINE PUBLIC • September 10, 2025
Paul and Kamiwan Oliver live with their three kids in a single-story home on about a quarter acre of land in the city of Calais. The family has a flock of 19 hens they raise for eggs and meat. The chickens live in a coop on the side of the house made out of a repurposed shed. Kamiwan said it's the family's "attempt to have a small amount of responsibility" in sourcing their own food. But in June of 2024, Calais passed an ordinance on domestic livestock that restricts what chicken coops are built out of, where they're positioned and the number of chickens a household can own. The Olivers say it's effectively a ban on backyard chickens. They filed a lawsuit in Washington County this week that alleges the ordinance violates the "Right to Food" amendment of the Maine Constitution that was ratified in 2021.
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • September 10, 2025
For more than a week, rumors have been circulating among Belfast residents that a major waterfront business, Front Street Shipyard, could be sold. The possibility of new owners taking over it and other nearby properties has renewed longstanding questions about the public’s right to access the shoreline in the midcoast city. Could any new owners of those private properties revoke the public’s access to the waterfront Belfast walking path? They likely could not, according to public records and a longtime former local official. That’s because the city has worked to secure permanent agreements guaranteeing the public’s ability to walk along designated sections of those private properties.
MAINE ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS • September 10, 2025
Retired Allagash Wilderness Waterway Supervisor Tim Caverly talks about the creation of the AWW as a Wild and Scenic River. Hear of threats to the wild, including multiple vehicle access points, escalations of human development, limited rule enforcement. Learn measures to monitor wilderness character, and require the Maine Bureau of Parks & Lands to administer the area for ‘Maximum Wilderness Character’ as required by law. At Curtis Library, Brunswick, September 10, 6 pm.
MAINE PUBLIC • September 10, 2025
The Maine Supreme Judicial Court heard arguments Wednesday in a dispute about property rights and beach access at Popham Beach in Phippsburg. The appeal was brought by Richard Tappen, who owns a beachfront cottage, and purchased a parcel of land that cuts in front of his long-time neighbor Clark Hill. Tappen then sued Hill for trespassing. A lower court ruled that there was an implied easement that gave Hill the right to access the beach. Tappen's attorney, Glenn Israel, asked Maine justices to reverse that decision. In Maine, private property rights extend to the low tide line. Public access is only allowed for 'fishing, fowling, and navigation.'
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • September 10, 2025
The Trump administration is making a serious mistake by cutting many of the agencies voters rate most highly, including the National Weather Service, the National Park Service, the Centers for Disease Control and the U.S. Postal Service. It would be a novelty to organize a campaign around government services that people actually want and trust, but it has to be worth trying. ~ Douglas Rooks
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • September 10, 2025
Forest covers about 89% of Maine’s land area, comprising an estimated 17.5 million acres. Maine boasts the highest percentage of forest coverage of any U.S. state. Nearly 92% of Maine forest is privately owned. State and local governments own just under 7%, and the remaining 1.4% is federally owned. Despite a slight decline in the number of trees since 2016, the overall volume of live trees in Maine has grown, reaching 27.7 billion cubic feet in 2021, according to a survey by the U.S. Forest Service. Annual harvests have decreased and tree mortality has risen, but more than a billion cubic feet of live tree volume is added to Maine’s forests annually. Each year, about 9,500 non-forest acres in Maine revert to forest, while 20,000 acres of forest are lost — an annual net loss of 10,500 acres.
MAINE MORNING STAR • September 10, 2025
If you have enjoyed a hike to a summit in the Green or White Mountains, there’s a good chance that a U.S. Forest Service “Inventoried Roadless Area” is to thank. But on Aug. 29, the Trump administration put New England’s irreplaceable roadless areas in its crosshairs for logging and development by announcing its intent to rescind the “Roadless Rule.” More than one-fifth of the White and Green Mountain National Forests are at risk. America can’t afford to lose its roadless areas. For an administration that has made big claims about improving government efficiency, rescinding the Roadless Rule may be among its most foolish stunts yet. The Forest Service has a $10.8 billion road maintenance backlog on its 370,000-mile road network. Only 3.3% of New England is protected from timber harvest and road construction, but scientists broadly agree we must protect at least 10% of the region for the benefit of biodiversity, the climate, and the well-being of our communities. Rescinding the Roadless Rule would set our region back, making our conservation goals harder to achieve than ever. ~ Zack Porter, Standing Trees
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • September 10, 2025
For the last century, birders have relied on books to increase their knowledge and improve their field identification skills. Smartphones and the internet are rapidly changing that. It’s a tough adjustment. I appreciate apps like Merlin, eBird and iNaturalist, but I still prefer to make my own mistakes rather than let AI do the work. Nonetheless, modern technology has its advantages. I have David Sibley’s “Birds of North America” downloaded on my smartphone. I routinely look up birds online at AllAboutBirds.org. I recently enjoyed a superb webinar through the Cornell Lab on confusing fall warbler identification. I started a YouTube channel because birds give off more ID clues than AI can reliably process. I’ve posted about 130 videos so far. My channel is approaching a million views and 14,000 subscribers. Ultimately, my message is always this: birding is easier, more fun and more accessible than you think. ~ Bob Duchesne
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • September x, 2025
Carey Kish, a hardcore hiker from Bar Harbor, just completed the 2,700-mile Continental Divide Trail from Mexico to Canada. Kish, who is well past his youth, spent six months walking alone through some of the wildest, loneliest, most rugged terrain in the lower 48. His feat proves that, aside from sore feet and relentless leg cramps, he has mastered the test of emotional endurance. So let’s share in the wonder and inspiration of the Carey Kishes of this world, who remind us of what is possible when passion and perseverance carry us forward.
BANGOR DAILY NEWS • September 10, 2025
I read with interest Saturday’s story of Presque Isle’s push to require solar projects to be hidden behind four rows of trees and 1,200 feet from roads and residences. I do not personally consider photovoltaic installations to be particularly ugly, certainly less so than, for instance, gravel pits, landfills, or even fuel storage facilities, so I wonder if those also face the same requirement. If not, I am suspicious that the good people of Presque Isle are being taken for a ride by fossil fuel interests. ~ John Marshall, Sedgwick
ASSOCIATED PRESS • September 10, 2025
President Donald Trump signed an executive order in March directing the Interior Department — which manages parks, monuments and other designated land — to ensure public property doesn’t contain elements that “inappropriately disparage Americans past or living.” The Trump administration is reviewing material about slavery, the destruction of Native American culture, climate change and more at federal parks that could be “disparaging” to Americans. The directive has raised concerns about sanitizing and erasing dark sides of American history.
MAINE PUBLIC • September 9, 2025
A Maine resident is in the hospital after becoming infected with Eastern Equine Encephalitis, or EEE. It's the first human case of the mosquito-borne virus in the state this year. The agency says the risk of mosquito-borne illness across the state is high, especially because of recent heavy rain. And the risk for EEE in Penobscot, Piscataquis, Somerset, and Waldo Counties is especially severe.
MAINE MORNING STAR • September 9, 2025
The Trump administration released its strategy to Make America Healthy Again on Tuesday. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said during a briefing on the strategy the 128 “recommendations are things that I’ve been dreaming about my whole life.” The proposals range in scope from issues that have largely been addressed to initiatives that are likely to cause concerns among doctors and reputable medical organizations. The report doesn’t include any plans to reduce pesticide use.
MAINE PUBLIC • September 9, 2025
Investigators from the Maine Public Utilities Commission have found the Passamaquoddy Tribe's plans to install solar panels on more than 200 homes in the Indian Township community will not violate state rules on the size of certain renewable energy developments. The project, funded with a $7.4 million federal grant, has been on hold since late last year after local utility Eastern Maine Electric Cooperative argued the rooftop arrays amounted to a single "discrete electric generating facility." An attorney who represents the Passamaquoddy in the dispute, said it is essential the tribe be allowed to move ahead with its project while it still has access to federal funding. The three-member PUC still needs to vote on whether to accept the examiners' report.
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • September 9, 2025
Farmers say this summer’s hay crops have taken a hit from the long stretches of dry weather, leaving pastures brown and feed supplies thin. Most agree, though, that the swing isn’t unusual and this year is part of a larger cycle. In a typical year, pastures provide enough hay to harvest three times and, in a good year, sometimes four. Travis Haley, who runs Caldwell Farms in Turner, said this year’s second haying was “extremely, extremely short,” with some pastures not yet worth harvesting a third time.
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • September 9, 2025
Maine Republicans are asking the Trump administration to revoke offshore wind leases off the coast of Maine that had been auctioned to developers last year, arguing they would harm the economy and fishing industry. Environmental advocates and state officials say the request is built on flawed logic and inaccurate claims. Representative Reagan Paul, R-Winterport, applauded the administration’s termination of more than $600 million in offshore wind projects late last month and asked for four commercial-scale leases in the Gulf of Maine to be revoked. Jack Shapiro, climate and clean energy program director at the Natural Resources Council of Maine, said the leases issued last year are for sites outside of Lobster Management Area One, which includes some of the most critical lobster fishing zones. Those sites were selected specifically to avoid harming the fishing industry.
PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • September 9, 2025
Brand-new wayfinding signs across downtown Saco will help guide residents and visitors to key destinations throughout the city. The project began in 2022, with the intention of highlighting Saco’s vibrant economic community in the business and industrial parks, the historic downtown area, and the waterfront, all while maintaining a unified, attractive design that complements the community. Throughout the summer, approximately 25 signs were placed in key locations around the city. Economic Development Director Tracey Desjardins said, “The pedestrian-friendly maps with custom illustrations are placed in high-traffic areas and will help people orient themselves as they explore the area on foot.”
