Maine Environmental News

News Items

Suspected and confirmed rabies cases in Bath
Coastal Journal - Thursday, May 10, 2012
A woodchuck killed by a dog on Saturday, April 28, tested positive for rabies. On Monday morning, May 7, around 6:45, the Bath Police Department received a call regarding a sick skunk. The skunk was frothing and foaming at the mouth and acting in an aggressive manner. The animal control officer captured the skunk. It was removed to a separate area, where it could be safely euthanized. The skunk is suspected of having had rabies based upon its behavior.

Madawaska fourth graders visit Atlantic Salmon hatchery
Fiddlehead Focus (St. John Valley, Aroostook County) - Thursday, May 10, 2012
On Wednesday, Ms. Gina Jandreau's fourth grade science classes took a field trip to the Dug Brook Salmon Hatchery in Sheridan. The hatchery is located on the Aroostook River where the salmon fry are raised from eyed eggs and distributed throughout the Aroostook River basin. The hope for the project is that many salmon survive the trip to the St. John River and make it to the Atlantic Ocean in New Brunswick and back to the Aroostook River in a year or two.

Unity College president to be inaugurated before commencement Saturday
Bangor Daily News - Thursday, May 10, 2012
Higher education nationally may be about to undergo massive change as students struggle with rising debt and increasing college costs, but the 10th president of Unity College is sure that his school will continue to be a leader in sustainability education. Stephen Mulkey, who will be inaugurated Saturday just before the 42nd annual commencement exercises, said this week that one of his favorite aspects of the college is that faculty and students there are willing to embrace what he calls a “transdisciplinary” way of studying environmental problems.

Former Brewer mayor, legislator, outdoorsman Dick Ruhlin dies
Bangor Daily News - Thursday, May 10, 2012
Richard P. Ruhlin Sr. may have been born in Bangor and lived his life in Brewer but he was home when on the Penobscot River or another waterway with a fishing rod in his hands. Ruhlin — a respected public servant for Brewer and protector of the Penobscot River and the fish who live in its currents — died on Wednesday after a short illness. He was 75. “The things he has done to improve the quality of the river and his work with salmon restoration in Maine” are his crowning accomplishments, longtime friend Charles “Dusty” Fisher said Thursday.

Millinocket gets glimpse of ‘game-changing technology’ that will create jobs at former mill site
Bangor Daily News - Thursday, May 10, 2012
The $35 million torrefied wood machine would be at least as quiet and odor-free as the paper mill it would go next to, a representative of its New Hampshire-based developer said Thursday. Cate Street Capital project manager Dammon M. Frecker spoke publicly for the first time about his company’s plans to apply within two weeks for state permits to start building the machine by early September. The plant would hire 25 full-time workers and begin producing, from about 240,000 to 250,000 tons of wood wastes, about 110,000 tons of torrefied wood pellets annually for European sale in summer 2013, Frecker said. The torrefied wood would be treated with microwaves to burn at about a 1-to-1 ratio with coal used in coal-fired electricity plants.

GOP tries to make up for convention snafu
Portland Press Herald - Thursday, May 10, 2012
The Maine Republican Party sent out an email blast today encouraging their base to visit websites and watch videos of the six people who are running for the U.S. Senate because they didn't get a chance to hear from them at the convention. The candidates -- Rick Bennett, Debra Plowman, Bruce Poliquin, Bill Schneider, Charlie Summers and Scott D'Amboise -- spent weeks getting geared up for the convention, with flashy biographical videos and speeches meant to help them win on June 12. But after Ron Paul supporters took over the convention, delays forced the agenda to be changed and there was no time for the Senate candidates to give their speeches. Most of them delivered some of their remarks to supporters at the convention in side rooms, although none of them got to use the big stage to address the entire crowd.

Opinion: Vanishing Vacationland
Bangor Daily News - Thursday, May 10, 2012
The lure of The North Woods was ingrained in me from my earliest memories. Our family came every summer. As kids we learned about nature and the universe, Grandma read us books about the wilderness at night. Sad to say, I showed up at the camp last year to find my view was spoiled with 23 400-foot-tall wind generators spinning during the day, and flashing their red and white strobe lights all night. I was heartbroken. Much of the income for Vacationland comes from tourism. I’m not too sure how many would come to see wind farms on the horizon. While it is important that we find alternative ways to make power, maybe we should consider going back to hydro power. ~ Jim Lutz, Bangor

America's Great Outdoors
Other - Thursday, May 10, 2012
People have been drawn to the rugged coast of Maine throughout history. Awed by its beauty and diversity, early 20th-century visionaries donated the land that became Acadia National Park. The park is home to many plants and animals, and the tallest mountain on the U.S. Atlantic coast. Today visitors come to Acadia to hike granite peaks, bike historic carriage roads, or relax and enjoy the scenery.

Local Cases Heard in Maine District Court in Houlton
Maine Government News - Thursday, May 10, 2012
Jason Siltz, 38, was ordered to pay $5,058 for logging 475 cords of wood, but paying the landowner only $3,422 out of $8,480 brought in. Dwight Osgood, 64, of Macwahoc Plantation, the local deputy town fire warden, was fined $100 and ordered to pay restitution amounting to $1,050 for damage done to a neighbor’s house for an uncontrolled fire. Osgood wrote himself a fire permit to burn grass, but the fire escaped and damaged to a nearby home. Thomas Small, 29, Smyrna, was fined $100 for burning without a permit. Jay Holck, 50, of Hodgdon, was fined $100 for criteria for burning cloth, cans, glass, and household garbage in an outdoor grill.

Downeast Coastal Conservancy launches $1.9 million riverfront acquisition project
Bangor Daily News - Thursday, May 10, 2012
A new campaign being orchestrated by the Machias-based Downeast Coastal Conservancy has its sights set on acquiring 1,020 acres along the Machias and Middle rivers, which surround the community. The “Two Rivers Campaign” has set a goal of raising $1.9 million and is being billed as an economic development opportunity that would drive community revitalization through conservation programming. Acquisition of three parcels abuting the two rivers would provide new access points for canoeing, kayaking and fishing and would bring those using the river for recreational purposes into the center of Machias.

Justices grill attorneys over PUC decision on 'smart' meters
Forecaster - Thursday, May 10, 2012
Justices responded skeptically Thursday morning to arguments on behalf of the Maine Public Utilities Commission as the Maine Supreme Judicial Court heard an appeal of a commission decision that allowed installation of wireless "smart" electric meters. In a 40-minute hearing on an appeal brought by Bowdoinham resident Ed Friedman and 18 other plaintiffs, justices were asked to overturn the PUC's rejection of a complaint filed last summer about health, safety and constitutional issues raised by the Central Maine Power Co. program.

Citizen Task Force on Wind Power comments on wind energy tax credit
Citizens Task Force on Wind Power - Thursday, May 10, 2012
Monique Aniel, Co-chairperson of the Citizen Task Force on Wind Power, today submitted comments to the U.S. House Subcommittee on Select Revenue Measures concerning the Production Tax Credit (PTC) for wind energy. She wrote, "The PTC is often credited for most of the growth in the wind sector but attributing market activity to the subsidy is overly simplistic and fails to consider other crucial factors driving development. When evaluated against key economic and environment criteria, the cost of the subsidy has proven excessive and the benefits to American taxpayers minimal. If the PTC were to expire, the economics of the industry would shift to States with renewable mandates. Power markets will ultimately confront the real cost of wind energy, and price it accordingly. The overall impact on the industry would be far less severe than proponents claim."

Smart meter foes make case to Maine Supreme Court
Associated Press - Thursday, May 10, 2012
Supreme court justices on Thursday questioned whether utilities regulators shirked their responsibility for ensuring the safety of "smart meters" when they allowed customers to opt out without giving assurances to other customers who have them. Opponents of Central Maine Power's wireless-enabled electric meters say the devices emit radio frequency radiation that risks health and are an invasion of privacy because of the detailed data they collect.

Roadkill survey turns cyclists into scientists
Other - Thursday, May 10, 2012
Mother Nature Network - Led by Adventurers and Scientists for Conservation, a new project in Montana seizes on the recent trend of citizen science, crowd-sourcing roadkill data from volunteers worldwide. While anyone can report a sighting — including people in cars — ASC executive director Gregg Treinish says cyclists and pedestrians have a unique appreciation for animals' vulnerability on roads, which many motorists treat as single-purpose car corridors. The ASC's Roadkill Survey expands on two state-level projects set up in California and Maine over the past three years, both developed by the University of California-Davis' Road Ecology Center. The REC opened in 2003 to study "the impact of roads on natural landscapes and human communities."

Penobscot County Conservation Association joins effort to help Maine deer
Bangor Daily News - Thursday, May 10, 2012
Maine sportsmen are lending Bambi a helping hand, and the Brewer-based Penobscot County Conservation Association has joined the “hunt.” Despite the “easy” winter of 2011-12, the white-tail deer population has precipitously declined in central, eastern, and northern Maine — to the point, in fact, that fewer hunters now pursue the state’s most popular big-game animal. To reverse this trend, representatives from several sporting groups gathered at the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine offices in Augusta recently to discuss the fledgling Maine Deer Management Network. Tony Richard, PCCA president, said, “I see it as providing a network of communications throughout the state, getting everybody moving in the same direction."

Sumner to vote on wind ordinance
Advertiser Democrat - Thursday, May 10, 2012
The Sumner board of selectmen Tuesday reported that the Industrial Wind Facility Ordinance was certified on May 2. A special town meeting is set for Wednesday, May 16, to vote on it.

Dixfield residents air views on wind ordinance
Sun Journal - Thursday, May 10, 2012
Dixfield selectmen heard a variety of complaints against a proposed wind ordinance, as well as a few comments of support, at a public hearing Wednesday night at which nearly 75 residents attended. The board will take the dozens of comments and recommendations presented and hold a workshop to decide whether any will be included in the document that will go before voters during the June 12 elections.

Farmingdale pipeline proposal gets another look
Kennebec Journal - Thursday, May 10, 2012
Residents said they felt more informed, but were still concerned, after listening to state officials explain how town tax breaks would work for a company proposing to build a natural gas pipeline in central Maine. The municipal tax increment financing district has been requested by Kennebec Valley Gas Co. and it will go to a referendum vote on June 22, the day before the annual Town Meeting. State officials explained the tax break to about a dozen people during a public hearing Tuesday night at Hall-Dale High School. This is the second time that voters have been asked to give a tax break to Kennebec Valley Gas Co., which plans to run a natural gas line from Richmond to Madison. Townspeople overwhelmingly rejected the deal by a show of hands at a special town meeting in December.

Calico lobster on display at New England Aquarium
Associated Press - Thursday, May 10, 2012
The New England Aquarium in Boston says it has a calico lobster that could be 1-in-30 million. The lobster, which is dark with bright orange and yellow spots, was caught off Winterport, Maine.

Richmond High students hit the beach for unique lesson
Kennebec Journal - Thursday, May 10, 2012
Toes froze, flip-flops were sucked off feet by wet sand, fog obscured the view and it took students some trial and error to figure out how to measure the waves rolling in at Popham Beach State Park on Wednesday morning. The bumps became part of the lesson as Richmond High School students learned about gathering and analyzing data. "We're out here like real scientists and mathematicians taking data," technology integration teacher Dan Tompkins told the students.

Sandy River Recycling to hold composting event in Farmington
Sun Journal - Thursday, May 10, 2012
A demonstration and compost sale are planned for Sandy River Recycling Association's public open house May 18 and 19 at the facility off the Dump Road. A portable rotary screen will be in operation from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday, May 18. The Friday demonstration is geared not only to SRRA, which is looking to buy the screen, but also to statewide composting companies and dairy farmers also looking for the latest in small, efficient composting equipment.

Opinion: Democrats need a candidate who will restore the party's core values
Portland Press Herald - Thursday, May 10, 2012
To remain relevant, Maine Democrats must restore the party's core values, including the dignity of employment, an equal opportunity to succeed, economic and social justice, quality public education, a healthy environment and access to affordable, effective health care. I am the only candidate who opposed the state takeover of the polluted Dolby landfill, and the only candidate to support a feasibility study of the proposed Maine Woods National Park, a gift of 70,000 acres and $40 million that could diversify a one-industry economy and attract guests and dollars internationally. ~ Cynthia Dill

Letter: Chemical sensitivity disease increases with chemical use
Portland Press Herald - Thursday, May 10, 2012
Multiple chemical sensitivity is a condition in which a person develops severe and debilitating symptoms from exposure to chemicals and fragrances. MCS is increasingly prevalent in today's society because we choose to manufacture our products and conduct our industries using incredibly hazardous chemicals. Multiple chemical sensitivity is a societal disease -- meaning it is man-made -- and if we created it, we also have the power to put an end to it. Every person who stops using fragranced products is making a difference. ~ Carrie Johnston, Winthrop

Opinion: Moderates only look dead
Other - Thursday, May 10, 2012
Chicago Tribune - Moderates, we all hear, are an endangered species. Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Ind., is the latest to be eliminated. Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, announced her retirement in February. The tea party, by contrast, is flexing its muscles. A lot of people who call themselves conservative should call themselves confused. Political scientists have determined that only one out of every five professed conservatives actually favors conservative policies on both moral and social welfare issues. As for the tea party, a New York Times/CBS poll last year found it to be the most disliked of 23 groups respondents were asked about — less popular than Muslims or atheists. ~ Steve Chapman

Letter: Did LePage know before commissioners hired?
Kennebec Journal - Thursday, May 10, 2012
Gov. Paul LePage said middle managers in Maine state government are "corrupt." He also said he has control over only his commissioners. Who are his commissioners? One is Pattie Aho, head of the Department of Environmental Protection. Twenty-two years ago Aho, as a lawyer for Pierce Atwood, was on the losing side of a dump fight in Washington County that took three years to settle. If LePage would like to investigate corruption, how about why the Maine DEP removed information from its website about the levels of hydrogen sulfide releases at Juniper Ridge Landfill? Or, why the 1998 or 1999 study of an east-west highway was removed from the Department of Transportation's website? ~ Douglas Papa, Gardiner

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