PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • February 7, 2025
City officials have halted a nearly finished tree removal project by the Portland International Jetport along Interstate 295 that may have violated municipal, state and federal land use regulations. A jetport contractor began removing trees last week to clear a runway approach as required by the Federal Aviation Administration. The project was approved by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland, which owns the property in a wooded area to the rear of Calvary Cemetery. But it’s unclear whether the work has complied with a site plan issued by city planners in 2019; a municipal tree protection ordinance approved in 2022; or wetlands protection laws overseen by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.