As Trump shakes up economy, winners and losers will emerge. Maine could be on the wrong side.

MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • March 9, 2025

President Donald Trump, with lockstep support from Republicans who control Congress, has wasted little time trying to overhaul the nation’s economy. There are invariably winners and losers. Maine is literally stuck in the middle of a trade fight between Trump and the Canadian government that could have immediate and secondary impacts. On top of all this, Trump might seek to make an example of Maine and follow through on threats to withhold federal funding, which would have ripple effects through the economy. The most important thing for business leaders is predictability,” said Quincy Hentzel, president and CEO of the Portland Regional Chamber of Commerce. “It feels like it’s all very much out of our control.”

Editorial: Sea Grant scuffle a sorry exercise in what’s to come

MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • March 9, 2025

The U-turn on the abrupt decision to pull NOAA funding — announced to considerable shock and disgust last Saturday — was welcomed last week by the lobstermen, fishers, aquaculture researchers and most everyone with a relationship to Maine’s singular working waterfront. We can’t express our sincere thanks to Sen. Collins, though, or join in the collective sigh of relief at the news of renegotiation without stating the obvious, concerning and very irritating: It simply should not have come to this. Sen. Collins could be worked to the bone if this babyish style of governing keeps up. Sadly, we see no evidence at all to suggest it won’t.

Opinion: We must commit to protecting our national wildlife refuges

MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • March 9, 2025

The National Wildlife Refuge System, managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, is the world’s largest network of protected conservation areas. Maine is fortunate to be home to six national wildlife refuges. They protect wildlife habitat and important animal species, many of them endangered or threatened. The Department of the Interior just terminated 370 Fish and Wildlife Service employees. These are some of the hardest working, most dedicated public servants in the nation. DOI said the eliminated roles “are not in the public interest.” With fewer employees to manage the refuge system, habitats will degrade, endangered species will go unprotected, walking trails will fall into disrepair and visitors will lose valuable recreation opportunities. In Maine visitors to our refuges contribute as much as $45 million to the local communities. ~ Bill Durkin, Friends of Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge

Opinion: Rail versus trail is not the debate for Maine

MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • March 9, 2025

The state Legislature is about to hear a series of bills focused on transportation options for the people of Maine. Unfortunately, these bills are working at cross purposes. The ongoing “rail versus trail” debate — whether to develop existing rail infrastructure for passenger and freight trains or to tear it up and build trails instead — is tragically shortsighted. It’s a waste of time and resources that undermines the medium- and long-term viability of both projects. The coexistence of active rail corridors and trails running alongside is a safe and viable model practiced nationwide, expanding people’s options for recreational runs, walks and rides and commutes of necessity. Rail and trail options are not competitors; they serve very different functions, both of which are important. ~ Aaron R. Hanlon, Waterville

Reward offered for information on deer illegally shot in Swanville

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • March 8, 2025

A private organization working with the Maine Warden Service is offering a $3,000 reward for information on the illegal shooting and wounding of a deer in Swanville. The injured deer ultimately had to be euthanized after it was found and reported to the Maine Warden Service on Tuesday, March 4. It had been shot once through the back legs and a second time through the bottom of its chest, then left to die. Operation Game Thief can be reached at 1-800-ALERT-US. Information can also be shared by submitting a tip online using the Maine OGT app “Tip 411” or through the website at  www.maineogt.org. 

Manchester family donates almost 100 acres to Kennebec Land Trust

KENNEBEC JOURNAL • March 8, 2025

Matt Sinclair explored the 100-acre woods behind his house almost daily as a kid. He was the fifth generation of his family to explore the land. Before him, it was his grandfather, Robert Hopkins — and before Hopkins, it was his father and his father. But Sinclair and Hopkins, 93, weren’t quite satisfied with the two centuries of family history on the land. They wanted to preserve it. Hopkins and Sinclair, over a cup of coffee, decided they would donate the land to the Kennebec Land Trust, a nonprofit that manages about 8,000 acres of permanently conserved land. That donation was finalized last month, with the land officially named the Hopkins-Sinclair Conservation Area. The Kennebec Land Trust will preserve the land for public access and wildlife in perpetuity.

Fly Fishing Film Tour, Waldobbo, March 28

PENOBSCOT BAY PILOT • March 8, 2025

The Fly Fishing Film Tour shares the best fishing stories on the big screen. At The Waldo Theatre, Waldoboro, March 28, 6 pm. $10 in advance, $15 day of the event, youth $5. Sponsored by Georges River Trout Unlimited and Coastal Rivers Conservation Trust.

Talk about "Rosalie Edge, 1877-1962: Hellcat of Conservation"

Friends of Merrymeeting Bay’s sixth presentation of its 28th annual Winter Speaker Series, “Rosalie Edge, 1877-1962: Hellcat of Conservation,” features author and journalist Dyana Furmansky. March 12, 7 pm, Zoom, accessible at fomb.org. Edge is considered a godmother of the modern environmental movement. She campaigned to preserve 8,000 acres of sugar pines on the southern edge of Yosemite National Park, campaigned for the creation of Olympic and Kings Canyon National Parks, and created a wildlife sanctuary at Hawk Mountain in eastern Pennsylvania.

Letter: America has become an embarrassment

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • March 8, 2025

I am so sorry, embarrassed and angry about what Donald Trump is doing to our world. The U.S. had made progress recently. We were working (albeit slowly) toward dealing with climate change. Someday we may wake up in time to save ourselves, but until then, we are now a pathetic country and I am ashamed. ~ David Pope, Wiscasset

Letter: EPA can’t accomplish critical goals with massive budget cut

SUN JOURNAL • March 8, 2025

When I was a child I lived next to the Androscoggin River. Toxic industrial waste flowed past my home and out to sea. Fish died by the millions. Between 1971 and 1978, the Environmental Protection Agency documented the environmental pollution caused by the paper industry’s chemical discharge and provided assistance to develop pollution controls. It provided financial assistance to states to monitor water quality. Today Maine residents can boat and fish the Androscoggin River. The EPA protects our health. Protecting our environment so we can all safely enjoy swimming, boating, fishing and hunting should be a priority for every Mainer. The EPA can’t accomplish these critical goals, to protect our health and safety, with a 65% budget cut. ~ Bonnie Brown, Industry

Opinion: Sea Grant funding whiplash a warning to us all

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • March 8, 2025

The vast majority of Maine’s commercial fishermen supported President Donald Trump. Yet he has determined that programs supporting their communities and businesses are “no longer relevant to the administration’s priorities.” Elon Musk has fired more than 100 workers at NOAA’s National Weather Service, which provides the forecasts integral to mariners’ safety at sea. They terminated scientists, including those who assess fish populations. Less science means more uncertainty, tighter catch limits and fewer fish coming across the dock. Then Maine Sea Grant found itself on the front lines of a “ready, fire, aim” offensive. This decision had nothing to do with legitimate policymaking or government efficiency. It didn’t even have to do with fishing. It had everything to do with sending a message that dissent will not be tolerated. ~ Michael Conathan, former Republican U.S. Senate staffer and managing director of an ocean policy consulting firm in Portland

Letter: All of Maine’s land is prime

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • March 8, 2025

Maine Monitor Editor Kate Cough wrote an informative piece last month about the need for “compensation rules for solar on farmland.” Questions were raised about amounts of compensation to farmers, as well as the potential for “’dual use’ panels that allow for some agricultural activity to continue, like growing blueberries or grazing sheep.” I learned that “about 10% of the state’s nearly 22 million acres are considered ‘soils of statewide importance.’ Of those soils, 800,000 acres are considered ‘prime,’ or land that is ‘of major importance in meeting the nation’s short- and long-range needs for food and fiber. I beg to differ. As one of nearly 22,500 Brunswick residents exposed to the sixth largest PFAS spill in the United States, I offer this paradigm shift: Every inch of our Maine soil is prime. Every inch of our soil on this planet is prime, whether for agriculture, forest, solar or housing. ~ Abbie Sewall, Brunswick

I never dreamed I would decorate my house with dead animals

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • March 8, 2025

I don’t remember my first piece of taxidermy. It might have been my first bear, taken in 2014. The bear now lies in the form of a rug along the back of the couch in my office. I have had the antlers from my first buck mounted along with the first crotch-horn, 6-point and 10-point bucks that I have taken. A cabinet that once held china dishes now holds 19 different skulls from 14 different types of animals. On top of the cabinet is a fawn. Six different furs hang along one wall. My moose is a fantastic square; 4 feet wide and 4 feet high. My traveling taxidermy show is a chance to educate non-hunters while highlighting my hunts and the animals that fill my freezer. ~ Erin Merrill

Maine’s ‘energy economy’ grows as Trump cuts loom over zero-carbon power

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • March 7, 2025

Maine’s “clean energy economy,” which encompasses jobs and business activities advancing carbon-free energy, expanded faster in 2023 than the state’s economy overall, benefiting from Biden administration funding that’s now in President Donald Trump’s crosshairs. A broad array of economic enterprises such as solar, wind and hydropower; geothermal generation; smart grid technology to manage electricity; lithium and other batteries; energy efficiency and electric vehicles comprise the clean energy economy, which grew to nearly $2.9 billion in 2023, or 3.2% of the state’s economy. It’s up from 2.7% the previous year, according to the 2024 Maine Clean Energy Report, commissioned by the Governor’s Energy Office.

Effort to replenish Maine’s depleted EV incentive program could also reduce electricity costs

MAINE MORNING STAR • March 7, 2025

Despite wanting 150,000 light-duty electric vehicles on Maine roads by the start of the next decade, the state ran out of funding for a key incentive program last year. However, a bill introduced Thursday could help fill that gap. The Legislature’s Energy, Utilities and Technology held a public hearing for LD 585, which would amend language in the Efficiency Maine Trust Act to allow more flexibility in using certain program funds that are currently only used for subsidizing heat pumps. The bill would remove those limitations so certain revenue could be used for electric vehicles as well. This change could, in turn, reduce electricity costs for ratepayers.

Auburn rail line to Portland should be a trail, lawmakers told

SUN JOURNAL • March 6, 2025

Maine lawmakers are under growing pressure to yank up the state-owned railroad tracks between Auburn and Portland and create a 26-mile bicycle and pedestrian trail that would cost as much as $36 million. The proposal is being met with mixed reviews. Lewiston resident, Stephen Burger, said, “Connecting Auburn to Portland via bike path would support the economies of all the towns along the way” and would likely prove “a tourist draw for the many cyclists who visit our state from away — again, an economic benefit.” Charles Hunter, an executive with the Vermont-based Genesee & Wyoming Railroad Services, said the proposal “could create impediments for any future rail service to return to the Portland-Auburn route,” though a second line exists that is still in use.

Paul LePage is exploring a run for Maine’s 2nd Congressional District

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • March 6, 2025

Former Gov. Paul LePage is exploring a run for the seat held by U.S. Rep. Jared Golden of Maine’s 2nd District in a surprise attempt at a political comeback. LePage was last on the state’s political stage in 2022, when he lost to Gov. Janet Mills. LePage is a hero among Maine’s conservative grassroots. Despite the recent loss and his status as a deeply polarizing figure across Maine, he would likely ward off others in his party from seeking the seat. Since he left the Blaine House six years ago, LePage has mostly been a resident of Florida. He must return to Maine to run, although he would not be required to move to the 2nd District.

Gov. Mills says tariff back-and-forth creates ‘significant economic uncertainty’

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • March 6, 2025

Gov. Janet Mills is calling on President Donald Trump to stop pursuing tariffs against Mexico and Canada. The tariffs would increase prices for Mainers and businesses operating within the state “and cause havoc to our economy,” Mills reiterated Thursday. Maine deals heavily with Canada, including $6 billion in goods that were traded last year, Mills’ office said. Maine also depends more on oil for heat than any other state, with more than 80% of the state’s fuel and gasoline coming from its northern neighbor. “There’ll be a little disturbance, but we’re OK with that. It won’t be much,” Trump said. Concerns over the tariffs’ impacts have already roiled the stock market, which saw major drops this week.

Conservation groups contest federal review of Kennebec River dams

MAINE PUBLIC • March 6, 2025

Conservation groups say a flawed federal review of fish passage plans for dams on the Kennebec River could doom endangered Atlantic Salmon. John Burrows from the Atlantic Salmon Federation said changes approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission will not restore fish to the river. "The only way to do that is to remove some of these dams, and FERC has just written that off," Burrows said.

New leader of embattled Brunswick Landing authority outlines priorities

TIMES RECORD • March 6, 2025

Daniel Stevenson was appointed the new executive director of the Midcoast Regional Redevelopment Authority on Monday. He will be overseeing the cleanup of one of the worst environmental disasters in the state’s history. “Right now, the most important priority is public safety, both in the immediate and long term,” he said. “Brunswick Landing is full of potential. We can nurture young tech startups and businesses that move Maine into the 21st century. Although the chemical release is unfortunate, things are coming together here. We will continue working with the Navy, EPA and DEP, putting science first in all our efforts — from release cleanup work and ongoing monitoring to redevelopment.“