Environment
Mills administration awards $1.3 million to support green energy and tech businesses in Maine
The administration of Governor Janet Mills on Tuesday announced that three organizations have been selected to receive a total of $1.3 million in funding to help advance the green energy economy in Maine. In a statement, Mills said the investments will “further establish our state’s leadership in developing forward-looking technologies to reduce our reliance on […]
After Clean Water Act ruling, states that want to protect affected wetlands need millions
Earlier this year, the U.S. Supreme Court stripped federal oversight from millions of acres of wetlands long protected under the Clean Water Act. Now, any safeguards to ensure those waters are not polluted, drained or filled in by development fall to the states. They’re finding that it’s not easy. “States and tribes already didn’t have […]
‘Forever Chemicals’ in Thousands of Private Wells Near Military Sites, Study Finds
Water tests show nearly 3,000 private wells located near 63 active and former U.S. military bases are contaminated with “forever chemicals” at levels higher than what federal regulators consider safe for drinking. According to the Environmental Working Group, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit that analyzed Department of Defense testing data, 2,805 wells spread across 29 states […]
Ahead of climate conference, U.S. House panel tussles over curbs on emissions
Republicans on a U.S. House panel argued Wednesday against aggressive moves to meet carbon reduction goals, saying U.S. fossil fuel companies are working to make their products cleaner. Democrats on the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on the Environment, Manufacturing and Critical Minerals countered that to achieve further reductions, federal policies should be continued […]
Energy committee rejects water contract bill after Poland Spring lobbying effort
A legislative committee on Wednesday voted against a bill opposed by Poland Spring that would limit the contract length bottled water companies can sign with municipal utilities — dealing a blow to the measure’s chances of passing. The vote in the Energy, Utilities and Technology (EUT) Committee against LD 1111, sponsored by Rep. Maggie O’Neil […]
Final election results show Maine voters ‘had passion around Question 3,’ says Secretary Bellows
Approximately 37% of the citizen voting age population in Maine turned out for the most recent election, a result that’s on par with the last comparable off-year in 2021. Mainers cast 410,040 total ballots for the Nov. 7 referendum election, according to the official tabulation released by Secretary of State Shenna Bellows’ office on Tuesday. […]
Experts say Maine is on the right track in adapting to a green economy
Maine’s recent advancements toward alternative energy sources position it as a leader in the transition to a green economy, according to a presentation by national and local green energy experts. However, some researchers say the state should expand what it considers green jobs in order to shift its economy without leaving legacy industries and workers […]
Climate grief and the stark choice that confronts us
If the five stages of grief are denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance, Americans can be found at all points along the continuum when it comes to global climate change and the environmental crisis that accompanies it. Like many who’ve contemplated a grim healthcare diagnosis that seems to belie of how they feel in the […]
Reliability v. sustainability: Inside the debate over the EPA’s proposed carbon rules
Electric reliability has been a hot topic lately — from congressional hearings to regulatory agencies and at the regional transmission organizations that run the electric grid in much of the country. The American electric grid is undergoing a major change, prodded by state and federal decarbonization policies, market forces pushing cheaper and cleaner forms of […]
In aftermath of Question 3, public power proponents contemplate their next move
Following the defeat earlier this month of a ballot question that sought to replace Central Maine Power and Versant with a consumer-owned utility, proponents of that referendum are uncertain about what comes next but maintain that the current power system needs significant reform to work better for customers. The referendum, Question 3, would have set […]
Northeast Amtrak corridor awarded billions for improvements, but not in Maine
Federal dollars are pouring into rail projects across the country, including right here in New England, but local lawmakers fear Maine may be missing its opportunity to jump on board. Earlier this month, the Biden administration announced $16.4 billion in improvement projects for Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor. The 25 projects between Boston and Washington D.C. will […]
Fiddler on the hoof: As ocean warms, small crab extends range into New Hampshire, Maine
David Johnson had been working in the salt marshes of Plum Island, just south of New Hampshire’s border, for about a decade when he spotted an unusual small crustacean descend quickly into a burrow in the muddy banks. It was a thumb-sized Atlantic mud fiddler crab with one distinctively large claw. The sighting, he thought, […]