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#MaineMonitor

The fruitless effort to primary Gov. Mills
Grassroots effort to challenge Mills has one problem: Its candidate doesn’t want to run.
Thu, 10/14/2021 - 9:30am

A political action committee dedicated to convincing Maine Senate President Troy Jackson to oppose Gov. Janet Mills is dead on arrival. That is, Jackson will not run against her. The committee, Run Troy Run, was organized by several labor unions in Maine as a self-described “pressure campaign” born out of frustration with Mills, the current Democratic governor. One particular point of frustration was Mills’ vetoes, said Kate Sykes, whose title for the PAC is “decision-maker.” This story was...
Thorndike and other communities list active departments, but they’re only a firefighter or two away from being unable to respond
‘Ghost stations’ in rural Maine mask depth of firefighter shortage
Mon, 10/11/2021 - 2:15pm

When Greg West received the alert for a motorcycle accident just after 2 a.m. last August, he dragged himself out of bed, then drove to the intersection of Stoddard Pond Road and Route 201 in Bowdoin. He was the only member of Bowdoin Fire and Rescue to respond. West, the deputy fire chief, found himself wearing “a lot of hats” at the scene. He was responsible for assessing the critically wounded driver, coordinating LifeFlight’s landing and commanding the emergency response. This story was...
Pan Am blames aging infrastructure, submerged pipe for some of its problems
After years of spills at Waterville site, Pan Am Railways says it cleaned up its act
Sat, 10/09/2021 - 9:30am

For more than a century, locomotives have been brought to a rail yard in Waterville on the banks of the Kennebec River, where they can be stripped, repaired and sometimes rebuilt entirely. Once a hub for the Maine Central Railroad, the yard was acquired in 1983 by Pan Am Railways, which continued to operate it as a major servicing hub for passenger and freight cars. But along with an old yard and heavy industry came environmental hazards, and the site has been plagued by problems over the years...
advocates say assessments in child protective cases not thorough, continue to leave children at risk
Diagnosing abuse requires collaboration and expert advice, child advocates say
Tue, 10/05/2021 - 9:15am

Hailey Ann Goding loved anything that sparkled. The 3-year-old also adored her pet chickens and insisted on taking them to McDonald’s for chicken nuggets. The blond-haired girl was just beginning to grow fond of owls when her short life ended. Hailey’s mother, Hillary Goding, called 911 at 10:48 p.m. on June 4, reporting that her daughter was unresponsive and not breathing. Police later learned Goding waited 20 hours to seek help even as her daughter’s breathing grew raspy and her body became...
damage to maine children causing mild learning disabilities, damaging neurological conditions, deaths
Child homicides are the tip of Maine’s ‘iceberg of abuse’
Sat, 10/02/2021 - 2:00pm

$Dr. Amanda Brownell, Maine's sole pediatric abuse expert, sits before images of babies who suffered injuries. The CT scan of a 2-month-old infant shows blood in the brain as a result of abusive head trauma. The X-ray of the other baby indicates multiple rib fractures from physical abuse. Photo by Garrick Hoffman.$

The infants arrive at the hospital with broken legs and arms. Sometimes their ribs are fractured. Others undergo CT scans and tests that show bleeding in their brain and behind their eyes – telltale signs that the babies have been violently shaken. Dr. Amanda Brownell, Maine’s sole pediatric child abuse expert, examines each of her patients carefully to determine whether the bruises, broken bones or brain damage are the result of an accident, illness or abuse. This story was originally...
Bits of plastic from the December 2020 accident are still surfacing
DEP proposes fining Sprague for Sears Island plastic spill
Tue, 09/28/2021 - 12:15pm

The Maine Department of Environmental Protection has proposed fining Sprague Operating Resources $17,800 for violating the state’s pollution control law after a December 2020 incident. Two shredded plastic bales fell into the ocean at Sprague Terminal in Searsport while workers were offloading them. The company did not report the dropped bales to the DEP until a week later, after agency staff received a complaint about plastic washing onto the shores of nearby Sears Island. This story was...
opinion: Making the grid more climate resilient will take planning grounded in science and localized power generation
How prepared are Maine’s electric utilities for climate disruptions?
Sat, 09/25/2021 - 4:15pm

In the wake of Ida, a hurricane intensified by the warming climate , more than a million electric consumers in Louisiana and hundreds of thousands more households across the eastern U.S. lost power. It was the latest demonstration of how climate stressors are pummeling an outdated and vulnerable electric grid – following California’s rolling blackouts , a winter storm that devastated Texas , and power outages during the Pacific Northwest’s record heat wave . Climate upheaval generates a...
North Berwick woman says COVID-19 restrictions inspired her to go after Gov. Mills.
Why one Mainer is trying to impeach Gov. Mills – even though she can’t
Tue, 09/21/2021 - 12:15pm

Jessica Rainville can’t impeach Gov. Janet Mills, and she knows it. Yet, out of self-described frustration with Mills “doing whatever she wants” by enforcing mask mandates and asking Mainers to spend more time at home last winter, Rainville started a Change.org petition to impeach the governor anyway. This story was originally published by The Maine Monitor . The Maine Monitor is a local journalism product published by The Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting, a nonprofit...
As COVID-19 continues, Maine’s battle with opioid addiction rages on
Opioids: A continuing epidemic, within a pandemic
Sat, 09/18/2021 - 1:30pm

Maine lost 18,000 years of life last year to opioid overdoses. That’s what Oliver Bradeen, executive director of Milestone Recovery in Portland, calculates based on average life expectancy and the ages of the 504 Mainers who died of an overdose in 2020. “I don’t think we will eradicate COVID — I think it’s probably here to linger — but we’re going to be better at managing it,” Bradeen said. “We have not been able to manage this substance use crisis in our country. In fact, if you look at the...
As child deaths rise, ‘nothing’s changed’ in child welfare system says former school nurse for Marissa Kennedy
Tue, 09/14/2021 - 8:00am

Mary Wright thought she heard the news wrong. “Four kids killed in one month?” she asked her husband. A former school nurse, Wright was stunned. From late May through the end of June, a 6-week-old baby had been shaken to death. A 3-year-old had been beaten to death. Another 3-year-old overdosed on fentanyl . Parents had been charged in all three cases. A fourth child, a 4-year-old, fatally shot himself accidentally in his home. This story was originally published by The Maine Monitor ....
unsafe homes: children in peril
Premature birth, premature death: The sad, tragic life of Maddox Williams
Sun, 09/12/2021 - 6:45pm

Maddox Williams’ short life began with a struggle to survive. The blond-haired boy was born in January 2018 and weighed just under three pounds. From his start as a premature infant through his toddler years, Maddox bounced between parents who battled drug and alcohol addictions, mental health illnesses and their own childhood traumas. This story was originally published by The Maine Monitor . The Maine Monitor is a local journalism product published by The Maine Center for Public...
opinion: Lending support to climate action
How a group of Maine philanthropists demonstrates climate leadership
Thu, 09/09/2021 - 9:15am

In a summer awash with climate catastrophes , stories of creative solutions float like lifeboats. One Maine example is particularly heartening: an unusual partnership between philanthropists and state policy leaders that has directed more than $700,000 into work on the state’s Climate Action Plan . Finalized last December, the plan maps out how Maine can reduce carbon emissions and prepare for rising seas and extreme weather . Actions to implement it are underway , many of them launched in the...
Financing public education at that level will be a challenge in two years. Backtracking won’t be easy, either
Education officials, advocates celebrate 55% state funding achievement. But can it endure?
Tue, 09/07/2021 - 9:15am

For the first time since a voter initiative passed in 2004, the Maine state government will meet its obligated 55% share of the cost of public K-12 education. An increase in state revenue coupled with federal funds that went to eligible projects freed up the money needed to fund education at a rate set by voters 17 years ago. This story was originally published by The Maine Monitor . The Maine Monitor is a local journalism product published by The Maine Center for Public Interest...
Maine is still in an outbreak, but a cool, wet spring could knock down the irritating insects.
Summer of 2022: Will browntail moths be this bad again?
Sat, 09/04/2021 - 2:45pm

Next summer may be just as itchy and painful as this one. After one of Maine’s worst browntail moth seasons, there are signs already that 2022 could continue a years-long outbreak of the invasive insect that’s responsible for painful skin rashes and occasional dangerous breathing problems. This story was originally published by The Maine Monitor . The Maine Monitor is a local journalism product published by The Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting, a nonprofit civic news...
Many cite better gas mileage, hybrid and electric vehicles for the dwindling Highway Fund. The big culprit is much simpler.
Running on fumes: Lack of will imperils fund that keeps Maine roads, bridges safe
Thu, 09/02/2021 - 9:15am

Last May, the Legislature’s Taxation Committee spent hours hearing testimony on a number of bills. One of them, to increase the state’s top corporate income tax rate to 12.4 percent, drew impassioned arguments from citizens and businesses, but ultimately failed. Another, to establish a refundable income tax credit for paper manufacturers, passed and eventually became law. Tucked in among the others was “ An Act to Invest in Maine’s Roads and Bridges ,” a short bill that would have raised the...
opinion: Getting to the grid of the future
As Maine reinvents its electricity grid, it will need greater public engagement, utility oversight and data-sharing
Wed, 08/25/2021 - 12:00pm

The U.S. electricity grid is a dinosaur, a huge, unwieldy relic of the past. Built with an expected lifespan of 50 years, much of its infrastructure is now more than 60 years old. Its outmoded design reflects an era when power flowed only one way — from generators to consumers. Now the grid must become more of a beehive with energy entering and exiting in countless directions, given distributed energy resources like wind and solar generation. Like a hive, it needs substantial storage capacity...
officials say Maine must overcome lack of port infrastructure, need for a skilled workforce
UK company wins contract to analyze Maine ports for offshore wind capabilities
Sat, 08/21/2021 - 2:15pm

AUGUSTA — Xodus Group , a global company with roots in Scotland, has been selected by the Governor’s Energy Office to conduct an analysis of Maine’s ports and supply chain, and their potential to support the development of the state’s offshore wind industry. Xodus Group, one of the four companies that submitted proposals, is under a conditional contract while terms are negotiated. Xodus’ proposal was the second highest in terms of cost, at $299,500 (others ranged from $160,000 to $1.4 million...
as call volumes rise and firefighter ranks thin, leaders sound the alarm for solutions
Lack of data stymies efforts to address firefighter shortage
Wed, 08/18/2021 - 2:15pm

Even when he works two consecutive 24-hour shifts, Chris Aberle rarely sleeps at the fire station. Sometimes he tries. If he is lucky, he might pick up a couple hours of rest. But lately his shift has been getting calls at night. “No one ever sleeps, you know, even if we had no calls from midnight to 8 a.m.,” he said. “No one really sleeps because you’re just waiting for that bell to go off.” This story was originally published by The Maine Monitor . The Maine Monitor is a local...
‘I don’t think anybody really thought, ‘How’s it going to impact the counties of Maine and New England?’
Awash in federal cash, Maine counties ponder limited ways to spend it
Sat, 08/14/2021 - 7:15pm

With more than $261 million in federal funding flowing in from the American Rescue Plan Act, Maine counties are debating how to use the money, while awaiting further guidance from the feds. Counties in Maine, which typically are tasked with a relatively few though important duties, are being asked via the federal stimulus dollars to launch an array of projects despite possibly lacking experience in them. This story was originally published by The Maine Monitor . The Maine...
New leadership at helm of nonprofit newsroom The Maine Monitor
Tue, 08/10/2021 - 1:45pm

AUGUSTA — The Maine Monitor has a new editor and executive director: Eric Conrad, a veteran Maine journalist and communications professional. The Maine Monitor was founded in 2009, as non-profit, foundation- and donor-supported journalism organizations surfaced throughout the U.S. to counter declines at traditional media outlets. Its mission is to “deliver fearless, independent, citizen-minded, non-partisan journalism that informs Mainers about issues affecting our state and inspires them to...
use of contract nurses and assistants in Maine has soared since 2017
Nursing homes face ongoing staff shortages, a problem that predates the pandemic
Mon, 08/02/2021 - 9:30am

In the years before the COVID-19 pandemic swept through the nation’s long-term care facilities and overwhelmed healthcare workers, Maine nursing homes increasingly hired nurses and nursing assistants through outside agencies to prevent staffing shortages. A four-month investigation by The Maine Monitor and Investigative Reporting Workshop found that contracted hours for certified nursing assistants in nursing homes across the state have nearly doubled since 2017. And agency staffing hours...
lawmakers pass measures to reduce carbon emissions and adapt to climate impacts
Legislature produces results with work on climate change initiatives
Sat, 07/31/2021 - 1:00pm

Last month the U.S. experienced its hottest June on record . Despite enervating heat, the Maine Legislature worked doggedly and passed many measures to advance the state’s Climate Action Plan – a road map to reduce carbon emissions and adapt to climate disruptions. Maine drew national recognition as the first state to legislatively commit to divest from fossil fuels ( LD 99 ). Other measures did not grab headlines but could play an important role in helping address the climate crisis. Here are...
Hard-fought reforms to public defense system were enacted without the signature of Gov. Mills
Gov. Mills lets public defense changes become law
Thu, 07/29/2021 - 12:00pm

Maine will change how it provides some legal services to low-income residents after lawmakers parsed a multi-million dollar proposal to fit in the state’s two-year budget. The compromise, however, did not earn the endorsement of Gov. Janet Mills, who let two bills become law on July 15 without her signature. Members of the state Appropriations and Financial Affairs Committee reached a compromise to add $18.5 million to Maine’s public defense agency — less than the $21.8 million originally...
opinion: The next solar frontier
Community solar farms hold great potential benefits, if the State does more to guide the industry’s growth
Sat, 06/26/2021 - 10:30am

As community solar farms spring up around Maine, RISK-FREE offers of GUARANTEED SAVINGS for subscribers descend on residents – in mailers and online, and even from door-to-door sales agents . Community solar farms do offer a vital exit ramp from fossil fuel dependence and a way to democratize access to renewable power. Somewhere between half and three-quarters of Americans can’t take advantage of rooftop solar because they rent, live on sites or in structures not suited to solar panels, or have...
reforms could change how Maine provides legal services to its poor and pays court-appointed attorneys
Lawmakers agree on ‘good start’ to overhauling state’s troubled legal defense system
Mon, 06/21/2021 - 11:30pm

A multi-million dollar deal to overhaul Maine’s troubled criminal public defense system passed the state House and Senate on Thursday in rebuke of Gov. Janet Mills, who has resisted adding money to a system that government and press reports say is failing poor defendants. Staffing and money shortages have plagued the Maine Commission on Indigent Legal Services, or MCILS, which is responsible for providing lawyers to adults and juveniles charged with crimes who cannot afford to hire their own...
opinion: Climate predictions don’t factor in surface winds, despite indications they may be changing
Wind is an overlooked wild card in climate change
Sun, 06/20/2021 - 10:30am

Through an “ abnormally dry” spring, Maine had numerous fire weather watches due to some combination of wind speed, relative humidity and vegetative “fuel.” The threat of fire increases “anytime you see sustained winds over 10 mph,” said Joe Mints, a regional forest ranger who chairs the state’s fire weather team. Historically, the state’s largest and most destructive fires have been wind-driven, Mints noted: “Here in Maine, wind is our nemesis.” This...
Maine to publish staff vaccination rates from hospitals and other healthcare facilities
Thu, 06/17/2021 - 10:30pm

The Maine Department of Health and Human Services is collecting employee vaccination rates for each hospital in the state, numbers it is expected to post publicly for the first time. The increased attention on staff immunizations signals the importance that state health experts place on doctors, nurses, nursing assistants and other healthcare workers getting vaccinated, both to protect vulnerable patients and to set a good example for the rest of Maine. This story was originally published...
brain-damaging disease affects hundreds of Maine children a year
‘Incremental’ progress: Maine’s effort to address lead poisoning was gaining momentum before COVID-19
Sat, 06/12/2021 - 10:45am

LEWISTON — Hibo Omer’s campaign against lead poisoning began nearly two decades ago. When she brought her 8-month-old and 3-year-old to a doctor for a routine checkup, she was asked what she thought was a bizarre question: the age of her rental home. “I’m like, ‘How on Earth would I know?’ ” Omer said. When nurses learned the home was built before lead-based paint was banned in 1978, they tested her children for lead poisoning, a buildup of the heavy metal in the body that can damage the brain...
lawmakers, governor in funding standoff
Defense lawyers say system crumbling under huge backlog, inadequate funding for indigent defendants
Mon, 06/07/2021 - 9:45am

Since opening his law practice on Lisbon Street in downtown Lewiston in 1990, Jim Howaniec has never been in a situation like the one he now faces. He has four murder cases awaiting trial, on top of 77 other cases. This week he will have 30 minutes to present to a judge the reasons why more than a dozen cases should go to trial in July, according to court records. “It’s unbelievable. It’s almost ridiculous,” said Howaniec, a defense lawyer contracted by the state to represent indigent clients...
opinion: Putting savings to work for the local good
Widespread impact investing could help Maine tackle pressing social, environmental needs
Sat, 05/29/2021 - 10:15am

The balance of deposits in Maine’s financial institutions is roughly $45 billion. That figure raises an obvious question to experts in socially responsible investing like Scott Budde, who runs Maine Harvest Federal Credit Union : “Why do we have financing gaps anywhere?” Shouldn’t more of those deposits be put to work meeting Maine’s unmet needs – from climate adaptation and food security to weatherization and affordable housing? Why aren’t they? This...
Private phone contracts at jails, prisons add millions of dollars to state and local coffers while financially straining families
As families struggle to afford phone calls from jail, Maine counties rake in millions
Tue, 05/25/2021 - 10:00am

She set dinner on the table before sharing the bad news with her 10-year-old son Wyatt. On and off throughout Wyatt’s life, his father has been incarcerated at the Kennebec County Correctional Facility in Augusta. Most weeks his mom, Courtney Allen, scraped together $50 to pay for a few 15-minute phone calls from the jail. That week she didn’t have the money. This story was originally published by The Maine Monitor . The Maine Monitor, formerly known as Pine Tree Watch, is a local...
CARES Act funding not enough to offset pandemic costs
Despite federal bailout, Maine’s largest hospitals ended 2020 in the red
Sat, 05/22/2021 - 9:30am

Maine’s major health systems ended 2020 in the red as they grappled with the costs of responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. Hospital leaders expect 2021 to be less dire but predicted the financial fallout could continue for years. And at least one expert said the pandemic revealed that it’s time to rethink how hospitals are financed. Portland-based MaineHealth, Bangor-based Northern Light Health and Augusta-based MaineGeneral ended 2020 with negative operating margins, indicating that expenses...
Growth of Maine’s aquaculture industry sparks conversation about carbon footprint
Mon, 05/17/2021 - 9:15am

Maine’s first commercial aquaculture permit was granted to Ed Meyers in 1975. Known as the “ father of mussel farming in the United States ,” Meyers’ pioneering mussel farm on the Damariscotta River laid the foundation for Maine’s aquaculture industry. Today there are five industrial-scale aquaculture projects slated for the state. Three have received final or draft permits — Nordic Aquafarms in Belfast, Whole Oceans in Bucksport and Kingfish Maine in Jonesport — while two other projects are...
Domestic abuse linked to 43 percent of Maine homicides in 2018-19
Fri, 05/14/2021 - 6:30pm

There were 18 domestic abuse homicide cases in Maine in 2018 and 2019, accounting for nearly 43 percent of the state’s homicides during that period, according to a report released by Attorney General Aaron Frey. That rate is unchanged from the last biennial report , which listed 16 homicides in 2016 and 2017 as domestic homicides, accounting for 43 percent of the homicides during that period. The victims ranged from 7 weeks to 78 years old, according to the April 28 report, compiled by the...
Chasing Maine: The Cultural Ambassador
Messan Jordan Benissan unifies through food, African drumming
Sat, 05/01/2021 - 12:00pm

Messan Jordan Benissan is both a music teacher at Colby College and the owner of the Mé Lon Togo restaurant in Camden. Born and raised in Togo, West Africa, he uses music and food to enhance cultural awareness in his circle of students, friends and customers.
Lawmakers delay decision whether to add money to next state budget for legal services for Maine's poor
Two-year budget leaves public defense reform underfunded
Thu, 04/29/2021 - 9:15am

A budget that will guide the next two years of spending in Maine passed the Legislature late last month without expanded funding for legal services for low-income Mainers. The decision opens the door further to litigation if lawmakers cannot resolve a decade of underfunding for a mandatory state service. Lawmakers committed $17.6 million to the Maine Commission on Indigent Legal Services, or MCILS, in each of the next two budget years. Most of that will be spent to reimburse private defense...
‘MCILS was not strictly following the rules’ for these appointments
Public defense commission nominees, including Jefferson resident, broke rules to work on serious criminal cases
Tue, 04/27/2021 - 9:15am

Two lawyers nominated to oversee the legal defense for low-income Mainers are among the attorneys who broke state rules and were not eligible for some cases they were appointed to work on, a review of state records shows. Meegan Burbank of Jefferson and Matthew Morgan of Topsham were selected by Gov. Janet Mills to serve on the Maine Commission on Indigent Legal Services, or MCILS, which is responsible for supervising and training court-appointed counsel for Maine’s poor. Mills said Tuesday...
Achieving goal of Mainers eating 30% locally sourced foods will require fundamental changes to food system
Sun, 04/25/2021 - 9:30am

The Great Recession gave rise to an innovative model for meeting Maine’s food needs with local resources. The number of residents experiencing hunger had grown markedly by 2010 just as donations of shelf-stable foods declined due to increased efficiencies in the grocery trade. After importing travel-weary produce from farms out West, Good Shepherd Food Bank attempted to meet the growing demand with supply from struggling Maine farmers. Kristen Miale, who now leads Good Shepherd, recalled that...
Proposed legislation would combat PFAS contamination, expand testing and add protections for those affected
Rep. Pluecker working to tamp down ‘forever chemicals’ tied to health risks
Fri, 04/23/2021 - 7:30pm

State lawmakers are considering nearly a dozen pieces of legislation to better regulate PFAS, a group of “forever chemicals” associated with various health risks, and widely used in industrial processes and household products. The bills will pass through the Legislature just weeks after a Fairfield resident filed a class action lawsuit against Sappi North America, claiming that PFAS found in Somerset County water sources originated from the paper mill company’s wastewater treatment plant in...
local caregivers fear being overrun by big corporations and out-of-state interests
In the weeds: The battle to regulate Maine’s most valuable crop
Wed, 04/21/2021 - 9:15am

The way King Bishop sees it, there would be no adult-use recreational marijuana shops in Maine if not for the foundation laid more than 10 years ago by medical cannabis caregivers. And the way it’s going now, those same medical marijuana caregivers worry they will soon be pushed out of the market by big corporations. “We wouldn’t have an adult-use program if it wasn’t for the work the medical (marijuana) community has done with legislators,” said Bishop, who got his caregiver license following...
seeking support to overturn a parole ban existing for 45 years
‘Do we believe in redemption or not?’: Rep. Evangelos pushes to restore parole to Maine’s justice system
Mon, 04/19/2021 - 4:30pm

If you’re sentenced to a long prison term in Maine, your chances of being released early are almost nil. In 1976, Maine became the first state to abolish parole entirely, also doing away with the Executive Council, which once shared authority for pardons with the governor. Since then, sentence commutations, another form of early release, have been rare, perhaps non-existent. Rep. Jeffrey Evangelos (I-Friendship), who’s sponsoring the first bill in nearly a decade that would restore parole, says...
opinion: targets for protected lands could help slow climate and extinction crises, support local food production
Conserving land to save our future: A goal to protect 30 percent of lands from development by 2030
Sat, 04/17/2021 - 12:00pm

The ethereal refrain of the white-throated sparrow runs through memories of childhood. My own children have rarely heard its call. Bird populations in the U.S. have plummeted since 1970, with 1 in 4 birds disappearing . The fraction of global species lost each year is now more than a thousand times the rate that existed before humans, and the United Nations has warned that up to one million species are at risk within decades . Slowing the pace of extinction and of climate change requires...
Hunger remained high through winter, but federal aid staved off worst fears
Sat, 04/10/2021 - 12:00pm

Demand for food assistance this winter remained high during the COVID-19 pandemic, but organizers say federal programs prevented hunger from increasing even more. The economic fallout from the pandemic, leading to hunger, continues to disproportionately hit the most vulnerable. And requests for heating assistance are trending slightly lower than the same time last year, although officials say this could be due to agencies closing to the public during the pandemic, limited access to technology...
number of homeschool students increased 71 percent
Homeschooling soared during pandemic: ‘They don’t need to sit down in a classroom with a book’
Tue, 04/06/2021 - 9:30am

Fourth-grader Vaughn Hurd paced the floor of his basement in Morrill as he considered a math question posed by his mom, Angela. Stumped for a moment as he multiplied, Vaughn continued to walk in circles before triumphantly declaring, “72.” “Good,” Angela Hurd said. Then she posed another equation. “Just moving around helps me think,” Vaughn said. “In public school I couldn’t do that. I had to sit at a desk.” This story was originally published by The Maine Monitor . The Maine...
opinion: Adopting clean energy requires turning away from fossil fuels
Maine needs strategic plan, policy changes to get households, businesses off fossil fuels
Sun, 04/04/2021 - 2:15pm

In the energy transition underway, Maine has strong assets and lingering liabilities. The Legislature and the Mills administration have set ambitious goals for reducing greenhouse emissions and increasing reliance on renewable energy. The state already gets 80 percent of its electricity from renewable power, and more solar and wind generation will make it easier to electrify heating systems with carbon-free energy. Maine is on track to install 100,000 air-source heat pumps by 2025, despite the...
As parasite threatens Maine’s ash trees, regulators weigh how to lessen damage
Fri, 04/02/2021 - 12:30pm

Maine regulators are considering a proposal to continue slowing the spread of the invasive emerald ash borer parasite that is killing the state’s ash trees. The new rules would expand the areas where Maine’s Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry, or DACF, regulates the movement of ash products, and extend a ban on bringing materials from infested areas of other states and Canada into non-regulated parts of Maine. The rules would also lift restrictions on the movement of composted...
Mainers have lived in a state of emergency for the past year — the longest period in at least 24 years.
Maine Republicans eye changing how governors can apply emergency powers
Sun, 03/28/2021 - 10:00am

Republicans are gearing up to challenge Gov. Janet Mills’ emergency powers this week in a battle that some experts and former governors from both parties say is largely political. The State and Local Government Committee is scheduled on Monday to consider more than a dozen pieces of legislation that would require either legislative approval of certain restrictions proposed by the governor during an emergency or a vote of the Legislature to extend an emergency beyond 30 days. The Republican-...
Armed with new data, Maine must decide if and when to make changes
Study recommends re-evaluating most MaineCare rates every five years
Sat, 03/27/2021 - 12:00pm

A 15-month process to study the system Maine uses to pay medical providers for treating the state’s lowest-income residents ended this week with recommendations to regularly review and standardize rates, and prioritize pay based on quality of care. Rates for most services covered by MaineCare, the state’s Medicaid program, should be studied every five years with adjustments for inflation made every two or three years, according to a report commissioned by the state Department of Health and...
Judiciary Committee pushing for oversight expansion of attorneys
Lawmakers push public defense reform in rebuke of governor’s budget
Wed, 03/24/2021 - 9:30am

A joint committee of lawmakers has endorsed adding at least $21 million to the budget for legal services for Maine’s poor in defiance of Gov. Janet Mills, who said she would not increase funding for the state’s public defense office until it demonstrated more accountability. The bipartisan decision Tuesday, March 16 to support additional money for the Maine Commission on Indigent Legal Services, or MCILS, is seen by many as a key step to reforming how Maine provides lawyers to poor defendants...
rise of community-focused groups likely helped Maine maintain low infection rates
Local COVID-19 task forces offer new approach to public health
Mon, 03/22/2021 - 8:30am

In February 2020, Margaret Downing read an article that terrified her. It predicted that a novel coronavirus spreading around the world would overwhelm U.S. healthcare systems, particularly those in small communities like her town of Yarmouth. “It was very obvious to me that this was going to be a very bad situation,” Downing, 73, said this month. “There were going to be a lot of people that got sick, a lot of people that died. It required immediate and energetic focus. We needed to get going...

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Online Critical Thinking workshop offered in October

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Upcoming Events

Online discussion: ‘Why are We So Divided and What Can We Do About It?’

Event: Tue, Oct 26 - 6:30 pm
Union Masons free turkey supper, Oct. 23

Event: Sat, Oct 23 - 4:30 pm
The Shotwell Drive-In 2021 season finale: Fright Nights

Event: Fri, Oct 22 - 6:30 pm
FREE Retirement Planning Class with Brie Pio offered by Five Town CSD Adult & Community Education Classes.

Event: Thu, Oct 28 - 6:30 pm
Captains’ Quarters: Stories of schooners Shenandoah and Alabama

Event: Tue, Oct 26 - 6:30 pm
In Conversation virtual talk with author Annie Coggan and Netflix producer

Event: Tue, Oct 26 - 7:00 pm
Herring Gut, Sara Rademaker online talk: American eel

Event: Tue, Oct 26 - 7:00 pm
Snow Bowl Chairlift Rides in October

Event: Sun, Oct 17 - 10:00 am
SoundCheck: David Clarke Trio

Event: Fri, Oct 29 - 7:30 pm
Books by the Bag sale in Rockland, Oct. 22 and 23

Event: Fri, Oct 22 - 1:30 pm
SoundCheck chills out with Cold Chocolate

Event: Fri, Oct 22 - 7:30 pm
Trekkers’ 10th Annual Community Auction

Event: Sat, Oct 23 - 10:00 am
Zoom-In ‘Nature’s Nightshift: Nocturnal Animals’

Event: Thu, Oct 28 - 6:00 pm
Camden Public Library Spooktacular and Pumpkin Palooza

Event: Thu, Oct 28 - 5:30 pm
Camden Conference and Andrea Hester: ‘Brexit at 5: How Is It Going?’

Event: Tue, Oct 19 - 6:30 pm
SoundCheck: Cold Chocolate

Event: Fri, Oct 22 - 7:30 pm
Photographers with Maine connections take stage at reception, exhibit in Camden

Event: Thu, Oct 21 - 5:00 pm
Jefferson Navicky revisits Maine writer Ruth Moore in library talk

Event: Thu, Oct 28 - 6:30 pm
Montville hike to highlight role of woodlands in forest health

Event: Sat, Nov 6 - 1:00 pm
Hardy Girls Healthy Women virtual roundtable discussion on women in sports

Event: Tue, Oct 19 - 7:00 pm

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