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May 18, 2013
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Press releases, events, publications released, etc. from Maine environmental organizations and agencies. Submit content.
Wanted: brook trout anglers
Announcement - Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Maine Audubon, Trout Unlimited and the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, are seeking new volunteers to explore remote ponds with their rods and reels before the end of this year’s fishing season Sept. 30. The partners are looking for anglers willing to survey a total of 187 remote ponds for previously-undocumented populations of wild brook trout. |
Free Trees
Announcement - Monday, August 29, 2011
Through the generosity of Dutton’s Greenhouse and Nursery, more than 1,000 trees, representing 75 different species, are being offered free of charge to municipalities, schools and non-profit organizations for community planting, according to Project Canopy officials. Two distribution dates in Sep and Oct will be set aside to pick up trees at Dutton’s Nursery in Morrill. |
Most State Parks, Historic Sites Open
Announcement - Monday, August 29, 2011
Maine state parks and historic sites sustained some damage to trees and shorefronts during Tropical Storm Irene, with no buildings or facilities damaged, according to officials with the Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands. All but three parks opened on Monday. |
Maine closing state parks and beaches
Announcement - Friday, August 26, 2011
All coastal Maine state parks and several inland parks will be closed for day use on Sunday in anticipation of Hurricane Irene's arrival in the state, officials announced today. |
White Mountain National Forest Closing
Announcement - Friday, August 26, 2011
The USFS is issuing a closure order for the White Mountain National Forest due to potentially dangerous conditions caused by Hurricane Irene. The WMNF will close at 6 PM on Saturday, August 27 and will remain closed through Monday, August 29. All WMNF facilities will be CLOSED to the public including the trail system. This includes all backcountry shelters, which are being vacated. The Appalachian Mountain Club will also close all eight White Mountain Huts, Joe Dodge Lodge, and Highland Lodge. |
Acadia National Park closing campgrounds
Announcement - Friday, August 26, 2011
The National Park Service announced today that it will close the Blackwoods and Seawall Campgrounds at Acadia National Park at 10 a.m. on Sunday because of the predicted path of Hurricane Irene. The campgrounds will reopen when the storm has passed. In addition, the Duck Harbor Campground on Isle au Haut will close on Saturday at 11 a.m. and will reopen when conditions are safe. |
Woodcock Q&A, Aug 26
Event - Posted - Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Chandler Woodcock, Commissioner of the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, will lead a public question-and-answer session hosted by the Moosehead Lake Fisheries Coalition. Woodcock will answer questions about hunting, fishing and outdoors-related topics in Maine. At the Rockwood Community Center, Aug 26, 7-9 pm. |
PRRT photojournalism workshop, Sep 17 & Oct 1
Announcement - Wednesday, August 24, 2011
The Penobscot River Restoration Trust is offering a free conservation photojournalism workshop Sep 17 and Oct 1, allowing a two week period in-between to go on a “photo shoot” focused on the river and the anticipated community benefits of the PRRT Project. |
Pesticide Notification
Announcement - Wednesday, August 24, 2011
On September 28, the Maine agricultural pesticide notification registry will cease to exist. The law that created this registry was repealed by the Legislature in June. However, state law provides other options for notification about nearby pesticide spraying: (1) Self-Initiated Request for Notification; (2) Non-Agricultural Pesticide Notification Registry. |
Lessons from puffins, terns, Aug 31
Event - Posted - Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Susie Meadows, manager of Project Puffin, will discuss some of the factors limiting Maine seabird populations and will discuss how techniques developed by Project Puffin have led to the restoration of puffins and terns to historic nesting islands in the Gulf of Maine. At the Project Puffin Visitor Center, Rockland, Aug 31 at 5 pm. |
Donn Fendler talk, Aug 30
Event - Posted - Tuesday, August 23, 2011
On Aug 30, 5-6 PM, the Gardiner Public Library will host Donn Fendler as he discusses his experiences, which led to the book Lost on a Mountain in Maine by Joseph Egan. |
Wildflowers, Aug 30
Event - Posted - Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Local botanists will talk about a variety of wildflowers appearing around the state this time of year and discuss their importance. At Cathance River Education Alliance, Topsham, Aug 30, 6:30 pm. |
Wilton meeting to discuss open space, Aug 23
Event - Posted - Monday, August 22, 2011
Wilton residents are invited to participate in a discussion about municipal conservation commissions and their role in assisting towns to develop open space plans. It will be facilitated by conservation resources advisor, Marcel Polak, a land conservation consultant who is working for the Maine Association of Conservation Commissions. At the Wilton Town Office, Aug 23, 7 pm. |
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Thanks for visiting Maine Environmental News, the most comprehensive online source available for links to Maine conservation and natural resource news stories and events. If you are a regular visitor we strongly encourage you to make an annual donation of $35 or more to keep this service going.
Jym St. Pierre, RESTORE: The North Woods, Editor, Maine Environmental News.
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Letter: It's not worth it to ruin Maine's celebrated vista
Morning Sentinel - Saturday, May 18, 2013
I want to convey my support for L.D. 1059 to reverse L.D. 1085, which put leniency in laws regarding open pit-mining and mountain top removal in Maine. If not for tons of money, why else would we even consider stripping this celebrated landscape of its treasure trove of unscarred wilderness? The resources to be dug from the ground will one day run out. What then of our ruined landscape? What then of the displaced wildlife and desecrated idea that Maine is where the wild still lives? ~ It's not worth it. ~ Sarah Linneken, Benton |
Letter: Development questions
Bangor Daily News - Saturday, May 18, 2013
What happened to Plum Creek‘s real estate development plans for the area around Moosehead Lake What happened to what could have been the largest private commercial real estate development project in the history of the state of Maine? Market conservatives and tea party activists are missing what could be a showcase example of their theories of trickle-down economics and fiscal conservatism. ~ Alan M. Church, Brewer |
Letter: Paper or plastic?
Bangor Daily News - Saturday, May 18, 2013
Paper or plastic? Both create major problems. In every square mile of ocean, there are 46,000 pieces of plastic. There are huge gyres in all of the oceans, where currents bring waste plastic into an area where nothing lives. Do we move to paper? Paper production emits 70 percent more pollution than the production of plastic and much more greenhouse gas. It takes four times the energy to make a paper bag as a plastic bag, three times as much water. They create 80 percent more solid waste and, unexpectedly, degrade very slowly in landfill. We need to ban all point-of-sale packaging and move to reusable bags. In addition, all plastic should be biodegradable and recycled. ~ Jim Wellehan, Auburn |
SAM I am not
Al Diamon Maine Media Mutt Blog - Friday, May 17, 2013
There appears to be some upheaval on the board of directors of the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine. I use the word “appears” because my only source of information on the resignation of two longtime board members and one recent addition is a blog posting by former SAM executive director George Smith. Smith — who, since becoming a journalist of sorts, has had a contentious relationship with his former employer — doesn’t bother to explain why the three board members called it quits, other than to say one of them didn’t like the organization’s “new direction.” He also doesn’t provide any information on whether the resignations were related. In short, his posting comes off as a thinly veiled attack on SAM’s current administration, with whom Smith has had his differences. |
CMP, governor celebrate power-line upgrade
Sun Journal - Friday, May 17, 2013
Gov. Paul LePage seemed pleased Friday about what the $1.4 billion upgrade to Maine's electrical grid would mean to the local economy. LePage was on hand as Central Maine Power and its parent company, Iberdrola USA, marked the halfway point in its Maine Power Reliability Program. |
Regulators to fishermen: Don't blame catch observers
Associated Press - Friday, May 17, 2013
The top regulators of New England's sagging fishing industry have asked fishermen not to take out their frustrations on the onboard catch observers who monitor what they pull up or throw back. The request came in an open letter to fishing permit holders Thursday, a little over two weeks into a fishing year that saw the fleet take painful cuts in catch limits. Observers have reported increased verbal abuse in recent months and the letter is a reminder that such anger is misdirected, said Rip Cunningham, chair of the New England Fishery Management Council and one of the five signees of the letter. |
Local Foods Movement Ushers in New Era in Maine Agriculture
Maine Public Broadcasting Network - Friday, May 17, 2013
For the last 30 years, the big agriculture story has been the decline of the family farm, and the rise of the biotech giants, such as Monsanto. But early indications from the Cooperative Extension Service show that in New England at least, the small farm is poised to make a big come back. Maine's local foods movement has ushered in a new era for new farms, and new farmers. |
Citizens go on frog patrol in the name of science
Ellsworth American - Friday, May 17, 2013
Sixteen participants trained to be FrogWatch USA coordinators during a special workshop at the SERC Institute May 15-16. FrogWatch USA is a national frog and toad monitoring program of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. Volunteers adopt a wetland and listen for calling frogs and toads during evenings in February through August. [video] |
With legal fight far from over, embattled Blue Hill raw milk producer will file for bankruptcy
Bangor Daily News - Friday, May 17, 2013
Dan Brown, the poster child for local food rules in Maine, said he will have to file for bankruptcy if the judge who barred him from selling raw milk and other food doesn’t reverse her decision. The state took Brown to court in 2011 for selling unlabeled raw milk from an unlicensed facility. In late April, Hancock County Superior Court Justice Ann Murray granted the state summary judgment, ruling that Brown had broken the law and issuing an injunction preventing him from selling milk without a license, selling raw milk without labeling it as such, and from “operating a food establishment without a license.” On May 8, Brown filed a motion requesting Murray lift the injunction while his case goes through appeals. He also filed to request she amend or overturn her order. |
Elver fishermen flocking to the Penobscot River
Bangor Daily News - Friday, May 17, 2013
Over the past two weeks, a sizable crew of fishermen have descended upon Bangor and other towns up and down the Penobscot River, chasing a seasonal run of elvers that has slowed in southern parts of the state. “[Some people] are just hostile,” Chris Tibbetts said. “Everybody seems to own a piece of river and everybody wants to hold it.” While Tibbetts said there are plenty of nice people out fishing, there are also some who look for trouble. Add in unlicensed poachers who are looking to make some quick cash, and you’ve got the potential for trouble. |
Column: Birding by ear is a learnable skill
Bangor Daily News - Friday, May 17, 2013
I have six rules for learning how to recognize bird songs. My first rule: The most common birds are the most common. Most of the songs you hear are coming from the same small subset of birds, those birds that are common to wherever you happen to be. Learning the common ones around you makes life much easier because they’re making most of the noise. It doesn’t take long to learn them. Which leads to my second rule: Divide and conquer. Learning new songs is just a process of elimination. ~ Bob Duchesne |
Endangered Ocean Creatures Beyond the Cute and Cuddly
Other - Friday, May 17, 2013
Our oceans are taking a beating from overfishing, pollution, acidification and warming, putting at risk the many creatures who make their home in seawater. But when most people think of struggling ocean species, the first animals that come to mind are probably whales, seals or sea turtles. In fact, of the 94 marine species listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), only 45 are marine mammals and sea turtles. What about the remaining 49 that form a myriad of other important parts of the underwater web? The less charismatic members of the list include Atlantic salmon. Damming, pollution and overfishing have pushed the species to a point where they are now only found along a small section of the Maine coast. |
Maine State Parks Passport Program adds Geocaching GeoTour
Maine Government News - Friday, May 17, 2013
Beginning May 18, the Maine State Parks Passport will include a new high-tech Geocaching GeoTour. Geocaching enthusiasts and park patrons interested in learning about this high-tech treasure hunting game that is played throughout the world. Participants will also have the opportunity to win valuable prizes. |
Column: Hysteria obscures lack of substance to climate change claims
Portland Press Herald - Friday, May 17, 2013
We've seen a ton of stories lately about how terrible the (presumed) effects of climate change will be in Maine and elsewhere, so it's worth noting again that these predictions are largely based on computer forecasts, not actual observations. In fact, a May 12 Telegram story on weather changes making Maine forests more "vulnerable" contained the following paragraph: "At this point, the visible impact of climate change in the Maine forest remains mostly subtle and the evidence anecdotal." It's time to stop being scared, and start rebuilding our economy without harmful taxes, rules or fees. ~ M.D. Harmon |
Farmers markets embracing food stamps with the help of USDA
Bangor Daily News - Friday, May 17, 2013
Seventy percent of farmers markets in Maine where growers sell produce, meat and cheese, don’t accept Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, benefits, the federal food service for low-income people formerly called food stamps. That could change soon. New funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture now makes it easier for individual farmers to accept SNAP transactions, rather than wait for the markets they participate in to lead the way. |
Cape Cod Community To Vote On Status Of Wind Turbines
National Public Radio - Friday, May 17, 2013
Next week, voters in Falmouth, Massachusetts decide whether to spend $14 million to tear down two wind turbines. The Cape Cod town installed these turbines just three years ago in an effort to produce renewable energy and cut costs. Nearby residents says the turbines are a health hazard and that the only cure is to take them down. |
Organic industry clout grows with consumer demand
Associated Press - Friday, May 17, 2013
The organic food industry is gaining clout on Capitol Hill, prompted by rising consumer demand and its entry into traditional farm states. But that isn't going over well with everyone in Congress. Tensions between conventional and organic agriculture boiled over this week during a late-night House Agriculture Committee debate on a sweeping farm bill that has for decades propped up traditional crops and largely ignored organics.
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Letter: Scope of Styrofoam ban questioned
Portland Press Herald - Friday, May 17, 2013
I have heard that the proposed ban on Styrofoam will not have an effect on the seafood companies in Portland that rely on expanded polystyrene. But what's the difference between expanded polystyrene shipping containers and an expanded polystyrene Dunkin' Donuts cup? Will the exemption for shipping containers be written into the citywide ban? ~ Emily Tibbetts, Portland |
Letter: We need strict laws to regulate open-pit mining
Kennebec Journal - Friday, May 17, 2013
If we mine in Maine, let's do it right. L.D. 1302, introduced this session by Rep. Jeff McCabe, D-Skowhegan, would greatly improve the bill passed last year. It would ensure that the new mining rules protect ground and drinking water. It also would make any company wanting to mine minerals in Maine financially responsible for cleanup and reclamation. In Maine, where we rely so heavily on our pristine environment for tourism and recreation, we need strict laws regulating open pit mining. I encourage others to contact their legislators and ask them to vote yes on L.D. 1302. ~ Melanie Lanctot, Readfield |
Maine Environmental Groups Applaud Committee Vote on EPA Administrator
Natural Resources Council of Maine - Thursday, May 16, 2013
Today, a majority of Senators on the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee voted to send EPA Nominee Gina McCarthy’s nomination to the floor of the Senate. “We are pleased that the full Senate will now get to take up Gina McCarthy’s nomination to head EPA,” said Lisa Pohlmann, executive director of the Natural Resources Council of Maine. “We strongly urge Maine Senators Susan Collins and Angus King to follow in the long tradition of Maine senators by voting for clean air and publicly endorsing McCarthy’s nomination.” |
Madawaska kids care class picks up litter to celebrate Earth Day
Fiddlehead Focus (St. John Valley, Aroostook County) - Thursday, May 16, 2013
Tom Gerard’s 7th grade physical education class at Madawaska Middle School celebrated Earth Day on April 22 by performing community service. Working as a class to welcome spring and care for their community, they picked up litter that accumulated over the winter and needed to be cleaned. |
Benton festival to be held Saturday in honor of alewives
Morning Sentinel - Thursday, May 16, 2013
Alewives are on pace to set a record run in Benton. On Saturday, Benton residents also will celebrate their relationship with the migratory fish during the second annual Benton Alewife Festival. Benton Selectman Antoine Morin, festival organizer, said this year's run is significant because most of the spawning fish hatched from eggs laid in 2009, when the state restored Benton's traditional harvesting rights. |
Judge grants creator of Clinton trout pond 90 days to resolve dispute with DEP
Bangor Daily News - Thursday, May 16, 2013
The attorney for a Clinton man accused of creating an illegal trout pond said he believes his client and the state can avoid a trial. Richard Lary, 68, was in Waterville District Court on Thursday for his initial appearance regarding a land use citation and complaint from the Maine Department of Environmental Protection stemming from a trout pond he constructed on his property on Hinckley Road in Clinton. |
SAM’s two longest serving board members resign
George Smith BDN Outdoor News Blog - Thursday, May 16, 2013
SAM’s two longest serving board members have resigned. Jim Gorman and Jim Hilly served together for 22 years, longer than any SAM board members in the organization’s history. Gorman, who is LL Bean’s grandson, cited SAM’s transition “in a new direction” for his resignation. At the same time, new board member Amos Eno also resigned. |
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Maine Organic Farmers
and Gardeners Assn
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Island gardens - veggies among the deer and rocks | | By Kaitlin Webber - Island gardens aren't that different from what I'm used to - apart from the layer of seaweed I spread last fall and the mussel shells that inexplicably keep rising to the surface. I'm also not used to having to keep all plants in maximum-security-prison mode. I left the netted gate open late last August and returned to find a vacant brown pit and a few beets with raccoon tooth marks. | | 5/16/2013 11:00:00 PM |
Genetically Modified Democracy: Monsanto and Congress Move to Stomp on Your Rights |  By Ronnie Cummins - Reliable sources in Washington D.C. have informed the Organic Consumers Association (OCA) that Monsanto has begun secretly lobbying its Congressional allies to attach one or more “Monsanto Riders” or amendments to the 2013 Farm Bill that would preempt or prohibit states from requiring labels on genetically engineered (GE) foods. | | 5/16/2013 11:00:00 PM |
Organic industry clout grows with consumer demand | | By Mary Clare Jalonick (AP): Washington - The organic food industry is gaining clout on Capitol Hill, prompted by rising consumer demand and its entry into traditional farm states. But that isn't going over well with everyone in Congress. Tensions between conventional and organic agriculture boiled over this week during a late-night House Agriculture Committee debate on a sweeping farm bill that has for decades propped up traditional crops and largely ignored organics. | | 5/16/2013 11:00:00 PM |
Old Orchard Beach butter maker faces loss of license | | By Jessica Hall - The Old Orchard Beach Town Council on Tuesday will consider revoking the business license of Kate's Homemade Butter, which has operated as a home-based business in the town since 1981. Kate's operates in about 1,000 square feet of space in a garage of an Old Orchard Beach home. The company has been building a 17,600-square-foot facility in Arundel, but that relocation has been slowed by past construction problems. | | 5/16/2013 11:00:00 PM |
Organic Valley ‘planning for a rebuild’ after fire | | By Allison Geyer - Displaced Organic Valley employees gathered outside a makeshift command post at the La Farge Community Temple on Wednesday afternoon, anxious to learn when - and how - they could get back to work. | | 5/15/2013 11:00:00 PM |
Diplomatic cables reveal aggressive GM lobbying by US officials | | By Suzanne Goldenberg - American diplomats lobbied aggressively overseas to promote genetically modified (GM) food crops such as soy beans, an analysis of official cable traffic revealed on Tuesday. The review of more than 900 diplomatic cables by the campaign group Food and Water Watch showed a carefully crafted campaign to break down resistance to GM products in Europe and other countries, and so help promote the bottom line of big American agricultural businesses. | | 5/14/2013 11:00:00 PM |
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Natural Resources Council
of Maine
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A Home Run for Maine Alewives | |
BENTON – Alewives are on pace for a record run in Benton, whose residents will celebrate their rel... | | 5/17/2013 12:00:00 AM |
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