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February 6, 2012
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Press releases, events, publications released, etc. from Maine environmental organizations and agencies. Submit content.
Maine Environmental News
Announcement - Sunday, February 05, 2012
Thanks for visiting Maine Environmental News, the most comprehensive online source available for links to Maine conservation and natural resource news stories and events. Since the start of 2009, I have posted more than 16,000 news articles and announcements. Be sure to check not only today's stories, but take a look at the headlines from the past several days as well. Articles often come to my attention a few days after they are published. ~ Jym St. Pierre, RESTORE: The North Woods |
Defining Wilderness: Defining Maine
Event - Posted - Sunday, February 05, 2012
This book discussion series is offered by the Maine Humanities Council. The discussions will be held at the Cary Memorial Library in Wayne on four Mondays: Feb 13, Mar 19, Apr 23, May 14. Discussion leader: Carol Kontos, English professor at UMA. |
Windfall
Announcement - Sunday, February 05, 2012
We can all agree that energy independence is a worthy objective, right? Alternative energy sources like solar power can help free the U.S. from fossil fuels and the grip of unstable Persian Gulf states. And wind power — wait, not so fast, says “Windfall,” Laura Israel’s urgent, informative and artfully assembled documentary. An account of rural Meredith, in upstate New York, when wind turbines came to town, the film depicts the perils of a booming industry and the bitter rancor it sowed among a citizenry. ~ Andy Webster, New York Times |
Intro to Winter Camping, Feb 10-12
Event - Posted - Friday, February 03, 2012
Introduction to Winter Camping with David Butler. This course will provide information about the skills to maximize your winter camping experience. At Hidden Valley Nature Center, Jefferson, Feb 10-12. |
Tracking with a naturalist, Feb 10
Event - Posted - Friday, February 03, 2012
Join naturalist Nancy Holmes to learn how to identify the animal tracks you will (hopefully) see in the snow this winter. At Damariscotta Lake Watershed Association office, Jefferson, Feb 10, 3:30 pm. |
Dirty Tar Sands Oil Coming Through Maine? Feb 9
Event - Posted - Thursday, February 02, 2012
Learn about the environmental and safety risks of this proposed project and about ways you can join the effort to prevent Portland from becoming the tar sands capital of the eastern U.S. The Canadian oil and gas giant Enbridge is proposing to pump dirty tar sands oil from Ontario to South Portland, where it would be shipped by tanker to refineries along the East Coast or Gulf of Mexico. The pipeline passes next to Sebago Lake, the drinking water supply for more than 15% of Maine people, and could endanger Casco Bay and our fishing and lobster industries. At USM, Glickman Library, Portland, Feb 9, 7-8:30 pm |
The Wildness Within: Remembering David Brower
Publication - Wednesday, February 01, 2012
The twentieth-century environmental movement owes much to a single man: David Brower. For the hundredth anniversary of David Brower’s birth, his son Kenneth Brower, an acclaimed nature writer, has brought together the testimonies of twenty environmental leaders whose lives and careers were transformed by David Brower; the result is a book in which a repertory company of path-forgers reveal their deepest values and most moving experiences. Available May 2012 from Heyday. |
Reducing coastal erosion, Feb 8
Event - Posted - Wednesday, February 01, 2012
Megan Facciolo, district manager of the Hancock County Soil and Water Conservation District, will talk about reducing coastal erosion. At Lamoine Town Hall, Feb 8, 7 pm. Sponsored by Lamoine Conservation Commission. |
Managing Your Timber Harvest, Feb 8
Event - Posted - Wednesday, February 01, 2012
Maine Forest Service District Forester Morten Moesswilde will talk about harvest planning, working with professional foresters and loggers, different harvest methods, wood values, closing out the job, and other aspects of harvesting. At Damariscotta Lake Watershed Association office, Jefferson, Feb 8, 6-8 pm. |
Birds, Bats & Blades-Wind Turbines & Wildlife, Feb 7
Event - Posted - Wednesday, February 01, 2012
Steve Pelletier, Wildlife Ecologist, Stantec, speaks about bats and wind power. At Curtis Memorial Library, Brunswick, Nov 7, 7 pm. Sponsored by Friends of Merrymeeting Bay. |
Winter Extremes: Oh, Deer, Feb 7
Event - Posted - Wednesday, February 01, 2012
Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife Regional Biologist Keel Kemper will discuss current wildlife issues, including the effects of severe winters on Maine's deer herd. At Sheepscot Valley Conservation Association office in Sheepscot Village, Newcastle, Feb 7, 6:30 pm. |
Great blue heron flies into Merryspring, Feb 7
Event - Posted - Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Danielle D’Auria, Maine wildlife biologist, will give a presentation on the Great Blue Heron at Merryspring Nature Center, Camden, Feb 7 at noon. |
Smelt/Ice Festival, Feb 3-4
Event - Posted - Saturday, January 28, 2012
Ice Cutting-Smelt Fishing Festival. At Mailly Waterfront Park, Bowdoinham, Feb 3-4. Part of a yearlong celebration of the 250th Anniversary of the Town of Bowdoinham. |
Family Winter Ecology Festival, Feb 4
Event - Posted - Saturday, January 28, 2012
This year’s Family Winter Ecology Festival will offer a variety of free indoor and outdoor activities for the entire family. At Merryspring Nature Center, Camden, Feb 4, 10 am to 12:30 pm. |
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Letter: Tank will help
Bangor Daily News - Friday, February 03, 2012
I started my business in Searsport in 1987 and we have been successful as landscapers. The last two years, however, have taken an incredible toll. For the first time since we opened our business, we lost money. I am supporting the propane tank in Searsport for the 12-15 permanent jobs that will pay $70,000 a year and the more than 100 construction jobs that will be here to build it over the next 18 months. I didn’t retire to Searsport with a boatload of cash — I am part of the working community that needs to make a living. It’s time to say no to a moratorium that will kill jobs and keep money from coming to Searsport. ~ Wayne Ely, Searsport |
Opinion: Good reasoning behind LURC reform proposals
Kennebec Journal - Friday, February 03, 2012
Ron Joseph, in his op-ed on Jan. 26, said, "For four decades, landowner complaints about LURC have been listened to and dismissed by six governors." Is there any wonder there needs to be a change? As a landowner, I am a firm believer in allowing a landowner to do with his property as he or she sees fit, as long as they are within the law and do not damage another's property. ~ Fred W. Hardy, Franklin County Commissioner |
Opinion: Obama’s Green-Energy Mirage
Other - Friday, February 03, 2012
National Review - President Obama is obsessed with green energy as a terrier is obsessed with a bone. He digs the issue up time and time again with a single-mindedness that is remarkable in contemporary politics. Last week, during his State of the Union address, he gnawed on that policy again, offering it to voters as the foundation of his economic recovery plan, a pillar of his foreign policy, and a hedge against global environmental catastrophe. President Obama, of course, is not alone in this regard. For 40 years now, green energy has been one of the primary opiates of the educated elite, a drug imbibed in varying doses by politicians on both the left and right. ~ Jerry Taylor and Peter Van Doren, Cato Institute |
Letter: Mainers not interested
Bangor Daily News - Friday, February 03, 2012
Since late October, Maine Citizens For Clean Energy has been trying to sell Maine consumers an expensive product. According to MCCE’s 2011 Campaign Finance Report, the PAC spent $93,000 on “campaign management and canvassing” and owed another $108,000 for “organizing, petition management and canvassing.” Even $200,000 worth of “volunteers” couldn’t meet MCCE’s goal. It’s obvious many of us don’t wish to be forced by special interest groups to support low-value, high-impact pet projects. ~ Karen Bessey Pease, Lexington Township |
Letter: Snowless winter explained
Bangor Daily News - Friday, February 03, 2012
In the Amateur Naturalist article, “A theory of climatology and my driveway,” by Dana Wilde, it is mentioned that “it is reasonable to think that this snow-melting January is a symptom of [global warming].” To some extent that may be the case, but, as reported by the National Snow and Ice Data Center, “the winter of 2011 has…seen a generally positive phase of the Arctic Oscillation, a weather pattern that helps to explain low snow cover extent and warmer than average conditions over much of the United States.” ~ Phil Sandine, Stockton Springs |
The Republican Candidates On Alternative Energy and Electric Vehicles
Other - Thursday, February 02, 2012
There are four Republican candidates squaring off against one another for a chance to take on President Obama: former Massachusetts Governor Willard Mitt Romney, former Republican Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, Texas Rep. Dr. Ron Paul, and former Republican Senator from Pennsylvania Rick Santorum. Let’s look at where each candidate stands on alternative fuel use and the growing EV market. |
New map pinpoints Lyme disease risk areas
Associated Press - Thursday, February 02, 2012
Researchers who spent three years dragging sheets of fabric through the woods to snag ticks have created a detailed map they claim could improve prevention, diagnosis and treatment of Lyme disease. The map, which pinpoints areas of the eastern United States where people have the highest risk of contracting Lyme disease, is part of a study published in the February issue of the American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. The map shows a clear risk of Lyme disease across much of the Northeast, from Maine to northern Virginia. |
DEP Efforts to Review Product Takeback Program Under Scrutiny
Maine Public Broadcasting Network - Thursday, February 02, 2012
When the Maine Department of Environmental Protection recently suggested review and possible phasing out of Maine's first-in-the-nation product takeback programs it had meetings with industry but not with other stakeholders or input from key staff who manage the programs. That is one of the findings from a Freedom of Access request for emails, memos and other correspondence at the DEP over the past year. Two industry insiders apparently felt so emboldened by the incoming Repubican administration that they also discussed trying to have a DEP staffer fired. |
Pressure Mounts on State Treasurer to Disclose Details of Tax Break
Maine Public Broadcasting Network - Thursday, February 02, 2012
Pressure is mounting on State Treasuer Bruce Poliquin to prove he is not a tax cheat. Lawmakers want Poliquin to disclose the details of the forest management and harvest plan he is using to keep 10 acres of the $3 million-dollar oceanside estate he owns in Georgetown under the protection of the Maine Tree Growth Tax Law. The property was was identified in a 2009 report by the Maine Forest Service as an example of potential misuse of the tree growth tax shelter program. |
Torrefied wood manufacturer to meet Millinocket leaders
Bangor Daily News - Thursday, February 02, 2012
Millinocket municipal leaders will meet with the president and CEO of Cate Street Capital in a closed-door meeting on Monday to discuss the company’s plans for producing torrefied wood at its Katahdin Avenue paper mill site, company officials said Thursday. A Cate Street subsidiary, Thermogen Industries announced on Dec. 1 that it had secured, for $20 million, exclusive rights from Scotland-based Rotawave Biocoal to manufacture a type of machine — called the Targeted Intelligent Energy System, or TIES — that makes biocoal, or torrefied wood, intended to replace coal burned at electricity plants. Thermogen plans to install five TIES machines in Millinocket starting in November or early 2013. |
State Treasurer Poliquin under fire for possible misuse of tax abatement program
Bangor Daily News - Thursday, February 02, 2012
Questions have arisen about State Treasurer Bruce Poliquin enrolling the majority of his 12-acre oceanfront property in the state’s tree growth tax relief program. The Maine Forest Service, in a 2009 report, identified Poliquin's Georgetown property as an example of a possible misuse of that program. In April 2011, the forest service sent letters to all tree growth tax program participants reminding them that they needed to harvest trees for commercial use and adopt management plans. Poliquin’s plan, if it exists, is not a public document. Sen. Troy Jackson, D-Allagash, called on Poliquin to release it. "If the taxpayers of Maine are going to shoulder Mr. Poliquin’s fair share of taxes for his oceanfront mansion, then we have a right to know whether or not he’s in compliance with the very law that’s giving him this break,” Jackson said. "If he’s ready to harvest the timber, I know many unemployed loggers ready to do the job.” |
Pat Keliher: Finding balance in management and fishermen’s lives
Bar Harbor Times - Thursday, February 02, 2012
Four working days into his appointment as commissioner of the Department of Marine Resources, Patrick Keliher said his schedule was keeping him plenty busy on the many fronts involved in managing the state’s fisheries. Keliher was sworn in on Jan. 26, after serving six months as the DMR’s acting commissioner. He came to the position after serving, since 2007, as deputy commissioner and director of the DMR’s Bureau of Sea Run Fisheries and Habitat. Prior to joining the DMR, Keliher served as executive director of the Atlantic Salmon Commission and executive director of the New England States of the Coastal Conservation Association, Greater New England. |
Walking Trail Proposed for Deer Isle, Stonington
Ellsworth American - Thursday, February 02, 2012
The Island Heritage Trust Monday presented a proposed project to create a walking trail within the towns of Deer Isle and Stonington to the schools and eventually to the Deer Isle-Stonington Causeway, said Mike Little, the trust’s executive director. Years ago, the island had a trail system through the backlands that residents used to get from community to community and cove to cove, but there was more open land because there were more farms then. |
Global warming forum moves some participants to action
Bangor Daily News - Thursday, February 02, 2012
The 80 people who gathered Jan. 20 at libraries in Houlton, Belfast, Bangor, Lewiston and Portland and the audience of about 1,000 at Westbrook Performing Arts Center heard author and environmentalist Bill McKibben explain the effects of increased levels of CO2 in the atmosphere as he described his worldwide campaign to encourage people to help reduce the concentration to 350 ppm, a number set by NASA climatologist James Hansen as “the maximum atmospheric concentration compatible with maintaining the planet on which civilization developed and to which life is adapted.” |
Waterville cancels winter carnival due to lack of snow
Associated Press - Thursday, February 02, 2012
Waterville officials have cancelled a winter carnival scheduled for this weekend because there’s hardly any snow. He told the Morning Sentinel the event will not be rescheduled for this winter, but will return the first Saturday of February next year. |
Spragues scrap controversial Scarborough project
Portland Press Herald - Thursday, February 02, 2012
A project that would have expanded public access to one of southern Maine's most popular beaches, and angered its neighbors, has been canceled by the developer. The Sprague Corp. notified the town of Scarborough and the Maine Department of Environmental Protection on Wednesday that it will not proceed with its plan for Black Point Park. |
Letter: Outdoor column about fishing accurate, gutsy
Kennebec Journal - Thursday, February 02, 2012
Ken Allen is right: Maine's trout fishing does not hold up to that now found in many other states, including some that are not known for their great trout fishing. Allen is also correct that our trout fishing has been in steady decline for over a decade now. Until Maine come to grips with this harsh reality, the fishing will continue to decline as our deer herd has. This will, and has already, cost the state untold amounts of money in lost license sales, tolls, gas, meals, lodging, guiding, retail and sales and service taxes. The solution is simple, if we want big fish and lots of fish we need to leave them in the water. Trying to use our hatcheries to mask this lack of discipline is not sustainable from an economic standpoint. ~ Bob Mallard, Skowhegan |
Letter: Renewable energy a scam whose time is passed
Kennebec Journal - Thursday, February 02, 2012
This so-called green, renewable energy is a scam whose time has passed. I am all for looking at alternatives to wind and solar. Maine can and should do better than this. ~ Linda Miller, Lexington Township |
Letter: Tank moratorium needed
Bangor Daily News - Thursday, February 02, 2012
Based on the Jan. 26 meeting with DCP Midstream officials in Searsport, I believe we must garner as much support as possible for a yes vote on the proposed moratorium on March 10. DCP officials promised to answer all of our questions; they did not and numerous town folk were not able to speak. ~ Jeannie Lucas, Searsport |
Letter: Needed heat, jobs
Bangor Daily News - Thursday, February 02, 2012
As a retired person, I am concerned about heating bills. We have a chance right now to bring in another heating supply with the proposed propane tank in Searsport. This is good news. Propane is a good heating source and there is no reason it can’t be here in my hometown instead of having to rely on oil from overseas. ~ Ronald Moulton, Searsport |
Questions mount over Maine treasurer's property-tax breaks
Sun Journal - Thursday, February 02, 2012
Questions lingered Thursday over whether State Treasurer Bruce Poliquin improperly used a longstanding conservation law to obtain property-tax breaks. Georgetown Board of Selectmen Chairman Geoffrey Birdsall said no resident in the small coastal town had complained that Poliquin's 12.3-acre waterfront property was included in a 2009 Legislature-commissioned study as an example of a potential misuse of the state's tree growth tax relief program. However, that could change, given the media attention generated by the outspoken Republican treasurer. The 2009 study of the Maine Tree Growth Tax Law program was neither reviewed by the Legislature, nor did Georgetown appear to initiate contact with the Maine Forest Service to determine whether Poliquin was following the terms of a 10-year timber management plan. The program has yielded the state treasurer approximately $50,000 in tax breaks since 2004. |
A Safer Fish: NOAA Lists Atlantic Sturgeon as Endangered
Other - Wednesday, February 01, 2012
OnEarth - After years of disagreement, NOAA's Fisheries Service has decided to list the Atlantic sturgeon as an endangered species. The listing will include five distinct populations of the fish -- four are endangered, and one will be listed as threatened. The action comes in response to listing petition filed in 2009 by the Natural Resources Defense Council. Since 1998, the government has banned fishing for these ancient creatures -- they haven't changed much in 85 million years -- but recent studies have suggested the ban hasn't effectively protected them. Some scientists and advocates say the endangerment listing will be the extra push the fish need to rebound. |
Opinion: The corruption of young minds
New Maine Times - Wednesday, February 01, 2012
One of my main roles in my family is that of the wise old auntie whose job it is to take the young and innocent and show them the political reality of the world. I do this by inviting the nieces and nephews under the guise of teaching them how to sail, then taking them down to Washington, D.C., for a few days. While they enjoy the placid white monuments, I do what no one else will do. I tell them the truth. I tell them true stories of how we got ourselves entangled in so many wars. I remind them that we've done good things, too. National parks are great, for instance, I remind them, as we climb aboard the tram to visit a pristine, pure Mr. Jefferson in his eternal circular home on the Potomac's tidal basin. ~ Gina Hamilton |
Dispute Over Paper Mill Dump Comes Before Maine Lawmakers
Maine Public Broadcasting Network - Wednesday, February 01, 2012
The state took control of the Dolby Landfill last year as part of the deal to sell two mills in the Katahdin area to a New Hampshire firm. But now the LePage administration and the towns of Millinocket and East Millinocket can't agree on who's responsible for paying the bulk of what it costs to run the landfill. Lawmakers feared ending up in just such a predicament last spring. That's when, under pressure from the LePage administration, many legislators cast aside misgivings and voted to effectively take the paper industry in the Katahdin area off life support by approving the state's acquisItion of the landfill. |
Fishery Regulators Debate How Much to Cut Gulf of Maine Cod Quota
Maine Public Broadcasting Network - Wednesday, February 01, 2012
Regional fisheries regulators are debating how much they should cut the Gulf of Maine cod quota this year. They're currently debating a motion that would impose cuts of about 15 percent beginning May 1. This would be an emergency measure, giving fisheries scientists more time to work on a full assessment. Today's meeting was dominated by discussion of a 2011 Cod Assessment that suggested cod populations are much lower than previously thought. |
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Natural Resources Council
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Do I Dare to Plant a Peach? | | It's a sign that Maine and the nation are getting hotter, according to a new analysis by the U.S. De... | | 1/30/2012 12:00:00 AM |
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Maine Organic Farmers and
Gardeners Association
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The myth of the self-made yeoman |  By Gene Logsdon – No figure is more endearing and enduring in agriculture than the lonely plowman out there on the horizon who raises himself by his own bootstraps to financial success. Only problem is, there is no occupation more dependent on the cooperation of society and nature to achieve success than farming. | | 11/2/2011 12:00:00 AM |
Sharp, careful eye brings Maine mushrooms from forest to table |  By Avery Yale Kamila – On a crisp morning at the end of October, chef David Ross and I step off a dirt road in Kennebunk and head into a forest dominated by pines and smaller hardwood. Our objective: To track down a few chanterelles and any other wild mushrooms we can find this late in the season. This trip will mark one of the last of the year for Ross, who is an avid mushroom forager and the owner of 50 Local in Kennebunk. | | 11/2/2011 12:00:00 AM |
New climate prediction: ‘Weird’, getting weirder |  By Seth Borenstein (AP) – For a world already weary of weather catastrophes, the latest warning from top climate scientists paints a grim future: more floods, more heat waves, more droughts, and greater costs to deal with them. A draft summary of an international scientific report obtained by The Associated Press says the extremes caused by global warming could eventually grow so severe that some locations become “increasingly marginal as places to live.” | | 11/2/2011 12:00:00 AM |
What to feed your chickens to get the best eggs |  By Nina Lalli – "I have a theory, and I don't think you're gonna like it." Justin was seated across from me at a communal table in a "Secret Restaurant." We had met not half an hour before, but were now deep in discussion about what chickens should eat to produce the best-tasting eggs – an obsession of mine recently. | | 11/1/2011 12:00:00 AM |
Factory farming: not just on land anymore |  By Wenonah Hauter – When most people think of factory farming they typically think of feedlots, hog factories or chicken operations–not massive open net pens growing millions of fish in our oceans. However, factory fish farming will soon pose many of the same threats to the environment and to consumers as its land-based counterparts. | | 11/1/2011 12:00:00 AM |
Bt resistant rootworm spreads | | By Dr Eva Sirinathsinghji – Bt is a toxin from the soil bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis, which produces a large family of similar proteins that target different insect pests; and quite a few of them have been incorporated in genetically modified crops to act as ‘biopesticides’. Unfortunately, the pests soon develop resistance to it. | | 10/31/2011 12:00:00 AM |
Cranberry juice beats extract at fighting infection |  By Christine Lepisto – Just between you and me, ladies, what do you do when you feel that irritating burn, knowing it can only mean a urinary tract infection? Do you run to the doctor's office for antibiotics, only to fight the yeast infection that sets in when drugs knock other systems out of balance? Then you probably haven't heard yet that cranberries can fight infections naturally, and very effectively. | | 10/30/2011 12:00:00 AM |
‘Hobby farm’ couple do part, feed hungry |  By Bill Nemitz – It's not uncommon for someone to show up at the Bread of Life Soup Kitchen in Augusta with a bag full of fresh broccoli, tomatoes or other leftovers from their garden. In recent months, however, Glenn and Rachel Powers have taken that kind of community support to a whole new level. They're giving away the farm. | | 10/30/2011 12:00:00 AM |
New England shrimp target cut in half | | AP – Portland: Fisheries regulators have set the start date for the shrimp season and halved the target for the amount of shrimp to be caught by New England fishermen. The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission on Friday set a target of 2,000 metric tons, compared with 4,000 metric tons the year before. | | 10/29/2011 12:00:00 AM |
The life of a seaweed gatherer |  By Daniel Klein – Most of the seaweed we get these days is farmed. But way up in northern Maine, Larch Hanson is still harvesting it wild in its many varieties on the rugged coast. This video isn't about the details of that process, however. It's about the essence of life for Larch, who rises at dawn to cut seaweed and then writes Zen poems about it. | | 10/28/2011 12:00:00 AM |
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