Letter: Maine’s shoreline should be open to all

MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • January 26, 2025

When Maine gained statehood 200 years ago, the opening of the founding documents declared that Maine and its citizens owned from “high water” out 200 miles, and thus secured control and access to those natural resources for the benefit of Mainers. Somehow, about 40 years ago, the Maine Supreme Judicial Court ruledthat recreation on beaches in front of homes lucky enough to have a beach was the preserve of the owner of the house. Walking along the shore at low tide should be a right worth protecting. ~ George Seaver, Waldoboro

Want to give Maine wildlife a hand? Here’s how.

SUN JOURNAL • January 26, 2025

Next month, Mainers will be able to sign up for a project that has elements of kid-pleasing science, life-saving data collection, protect-the-Earth environmentalism and the kind of eww factor common whenever cars and frogs meet. For the eighth year, registration will take place in February for Maine Big Night: Amphibian Migration Monitoring, a statewide, after-dark affair that runs from March 15 to May 15. The project is an outdoor-based three-fer, giving Mainers a chance to learn more about their environment while providing important information to the state and possibly saving the lives of both humans and wet wildlife. And those involved say it’s a good time too.

Maine’s offshore wind ambitions: Big ideas tempered by setbacks and competition

MAINE MONITOR • January 25, 2025

Maine’s formal interest in developing ocean wind energy dates back to 2008, when former Gov. John Baldacci created an Ocean Energy Task Force to devise a strategy. In 2012, there was a $120 million plan from Statoil to float four, 3-megawatt wind turbines in state waters off Boothbay Harbor.  But the political climate changed when Republican Paul LePage was elected governor. Frustrated by the maneuvering, Statoil pulled the plug on its project. Meanwhile, Principle Power, an American company that also once considered Maine but abandoned the effort in 2010 after complaining it was edged out by UMaine, christened a 48-megawatt floater off Scotland in 2021, the Kincardine Offshore Windfarm.

Once poised to lead on offshore wind, Maine has stumbled

MAINE MONITOR • January 25, 2025

News reports last week detailed President Donald Trump’s efforts to derail offshore wind energy in the United States. But in an undisclosed location in Trenton, contractors are putting the finishing touches on a 375-ton concrete structure aimed at putting Maine back in the global race to design cost-effective platforms for the next era of ocean energy — commercial, floating offshore wind farms. Trump’s order to pause federal offshore wind leases and permits won’t stop this effort. If all goes as planned, researchers from the University of Maine will launch the 52-foot wide, quarter-scale concrete hull, with a turbine blade reaching 108 feet above the waterline, later this year off Castine. But Maine and the United States have been passed by other countries that have full-scale floating projects at sea and by developers that are ahead in advancing their designs.

Guidebook highlights 100 wonderful places

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • January 25, 2025

Florida Lake is an oasis of tranquility just a few miles north of the hubbub of the downtown Freeport shopping district. The 167-acre, town-owned property features a large, shallow lake (it just so happens to be shaped like the state of Florida, hence the name), wetlands, woods and a figure-eight hiking loop that measures just over 3 miles. The preserve at Florida Lake is just one of many in Southern Maine Trails, which features 100 wonderful saunters suitable “for any season, any age, any ability.” The colorful guide was created by Jill McMahon of Portland, and includes a wide variety of trails in 20 towns across the region ranging from Topsham to Wells and Windham to Cape Elizabeth.

Maine is a proving ground for commercial chaga farming

SUN JOURNAL • January 25, 2025

Three years ago Justin and Nikki Triquet set out to help others heal through the use of medicinal chaga and to prove to the naysayers that commercial chaga farming, not foraging, is not only possible, but sustainable. The Triquets have refined their techniques and routine since then. The couple is planning for more farms and a future of turning fungi found naturally in Maine into a key and sustainable agribusiness — the first of its kind in North America.

Snowmobilers rescued after falling through ice on Moose River

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • January 25, 2025

Three snowmobilers were rescued Friday afternoon after falling through the ice at the mouth of Moose River, which empties into Moosehead Lake. According to Rockwood Fire and Rescue, at about 2:30 p.m. they received a call that the snowmobilers had ended up in the water. Rescue crews were able to immediately rescue two men, but a third snowmobiler was missing. That person was later found safe.

Opinion: Coastal living may endanger your life

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • January 25, 2025

Coastal living is a dream for many Americans, but the effects of climate change are making it increasingly risky. Rising sea levels and stronger storms are just the beginning; the threat to public health is growing and millions living on the coast are already feeling the impact. At the forefront, the threat to coastal living is climate change. Sea levels are quickly rising due to melting glaciers and expanding warm oceans, putting coastal areas at risk. Storm surges are becoming more intense, and high-tide flooding now occurs up to 900% more often than it did 50 years ago. Environmental changes affect public health, too. As the environment continues to change and storms grow stronger, we must prioritize protecting coastal communities and preventing disaster. ~ Kristina Carvalho, MSW, policy analyst, Boston University School of Public Health, Scarborough

Lewiston finalizing plans to overhaul Simard-Payne Memorial Park

SUN JOURNAL • January 24, 2025

City officials and a team of consultants are close to finalizing a plan for overhauling Simard-Payne Memorial Park over a number of years as the city looks to draw more attention and investment to the riverfront. City councilors received a preview this week of potential concept designs for the park, with a final design expected to be done by late March. The plans could include features such as canal overlooks, an adventure playground and splash pad, an enlarged amphitheater and space for a future pavilion that could host concerts.

Mining company to sell some land in Penobscot County

MAINE MONITOR • January 24, 2025

Canadian mining exploration company Wolfden Resources Corporation will sell 3,770 acres of the company’s 6,862 acre timberland property in northern Penobscot County to one of its stakeholders, Altius Minerals Corporation, in an apparent effort to finance exploration work at a site in Nevada. Wolfden will sell the land, timber and mineral rights, while retaining the option to explore and buy back the mineral rights for five years. Wolfden will retain ownership of the Pickett Mountain deposit and all of its mineral resources. The deal is expected to close for $1.5 million at the end of January. Last February, LUPC staff rejected Wolfden’s second attempt to apply for a rezoning after LUPC staff said the “project does not represent environmentally responsible mining,” and that approving the rezoning would not meet the commission’s obligation to “prevent the despoliation, pollution and detrimental uses of the water.” 

A quarter of all North Atlantic right whales believed to be in a small area off the Maine coast

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • January 24, 2025

Maine’s top fisheries official on Friday asked lobstermen to reduce their vertical fishing lines in an area in the Gulf of Maine where endangered North Atlantic right whales are believed to be gathered. “As many as 90 individual right whales have been identified” off the western edge of Jeffreys Ledge, Patrick Keliher, commissioner of the Maine Department of Marine Resources, said. Roughly 370 North Atlantic right whales are estimated to be living. NOAA Fisheries describes them as “one of the world’s most endangered large whale species” and cites vessel strikes and entanglement with fishing gear as the leading causes of mortality.

Maine’s marine resources chief urges boaters to avoid right whales, pauses some enforcement

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • January 24, 2025

As dozens of North Atlantic right whales continue to group near Jeffreys Ledge, marine officials are urging lobster fishermen to remove nearby fishing gear and said they will not be enforcing state and federal laws mandating the use of two endlines on trap gear. As many as 90 individual right whales — a significant portion of the critically endangered species’ global population — have been identified off the ledge’s western edge within the last two weeks.

Conservation Law Foundation sues aquaculture company for pollution

MAINE PUBLIC • January 24, 2025

The Conservation Law Foundation has filed a lawsuit against Cooke Aquaculture, saying the company has violated the Clean Water Act at its Down East salmon pens. CLF said the salmon pens release fish feces, fish food and pieces of dead salmon into the surrounding water, polluting the water and ocean floor. "So due to the waste, the lobstermen have had to deal with foul smelling black sludge on their traps," said Heather Govern, vice president of CLF's clean air and water program. "They've had to drive further out from the harbors and away from Cook's cages in order to drop their lobster traps." Govern said Cooke's programs can work, just not like this.

Norway land trust names interim director

SUN JOURNAL • January 24, 2025

Western Foothills Land Trust has named Kelli Shedd its interim executive director. Shedd has worked for the trust since 2019 in development and community outreach. Shedd previously served as marketing and membership manager for Loon Echo Land Trust in Bridgton, and has worked in conservation and outdoor recreation throughout New England for over 20 years.

After floods, Augusta updates Kennebec River warnings

KENNEBEC JOURNAL • January 24, 2025

Flooding in 2023, including the Christmastime storm that breached the banks of the Kennebec River from Waterville to Gardiner, highlighted the need to update warning systems so that property owners and government officials aren’t caught by surprise. The updates were necessary to reflect changing conditions, officials said, including in the climate, which is a factor in the increasing number of large storms in the area.

This ‘little’ mountain in western Maine is a great winter trek

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • January 24, 2025

Out in the state’s western wilderness, Little Bigelow is the sixth and easternmost prominent peak in the Bigelow Mountain Range. I think the name “little” causes it to slide under the radar. The entire mountain range is located in the 36,000-acre Bigelow Preserve, a state-owned chunk of public land that features about 30 miles of hiking trails and several backcountry tent sites. To hike Little Bigelow in early January, 2023, I started at the intersection with Bog Brook Road and walked two-tenths of a mile on a snowy road to the parking lot and trail. The trail climbs the eastern slope of the mountain. Marked with white paint, it’s actually a section of the famous Appalachian Trail. ~ Aislinn Sarnacki

Column: What birding books can do for you that apps cannot

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • January 24, 2025

Some bird books can’t be replaced by an app. Books on how-to and where-to are still valuable. Guidebooks on advanced identification of difficult species can display troublesome birds side-by-side. That makes my books on gull, shorebird and hawk identification still useful, even as the pages slowly yellow with age. Apps have little room for stylish writing. Text is terse and to the point. Over the years, I’ve developed a certain fondness for birding authors who display a flair for writing. Maine Audubon is hosting a ZOOM presentation by Kenn Kaufman on Feb. 10. We’ll learn firsthand about the birds Audubon missed, and the fascinating history behind them. It’s free, but registration is limited. ~ Bob Duchesne

NPS Comptroller Named Acting Director

NATIONAL PARKS TRAVELER • January 23, 2025

Jessica Bowron, a National Park Service veteran who has been serving as the agency's comptroller, has been named acting director of the agency. Bowron joined the Park Service in 2007 as a budget analyst and steadily worked her way up to her current position, which she's held since 2017. She will serve as acting director until a Senate-confirmed director is named, or until May 31, unless her assignment is extended by President Trump. During his first term Trump did not have a permanent, Senate-confirmed Park Service director.

Firefighters work 11 hours to extinguish fire in Sappi wood yard

MORNING SENTINEL • January 23, 2025

Firefighters from several towns worked for hours Thursday to extinguish a fire in a conveyor belt gear box at the Sappi Somerset Mill wood yard that was difficult to access because it was surrounded by piles of wood chips. Wood chips are piled about three stories high in the wood yard before they are placed on the covered conveyor belt system, which extends from 10 feet in the ground to about five stories in the air. More than 300 trucks a day deliver wood to the yard.

Belfast's City Council votes unanimously to limit cruise ship size in port

MAINE PUBLIC • January 23, 2025

The Belfast City Council voted unanimously Wednesday to limit the size of cruise ships that are allowed to dock. The vote follows a recommendation from Harbor Master Katherine Given who raised concerns about safety and navigation connected with the eight larger passenger ships that docked last summer and the tour busses that transport the visitors to neighboring cities. Given said the committee decided there was no way to solve these problems outside of limiting the size of the boats allowed into port to 50 passengers.