By Henry Heyburn Jr., former NRCM board member In July of 1999, I attended the breaching of the Edwards Dam on the Kennebec River. There were hundreds of others in attendance including Secretary of the Interior Bruce Babbitt and Pulitzer Prize-winning writer John McPhee, author of Coming Into the Country, The Survival of the Birch Read More
The River Wild
One of the most ambitious river restorations ever undertaken in the United States is happening on the Penobscot River. By Virginia M. Wright Down East magazine The reporters call John Banks from far-flung places like India, China, and Japan. They want to know how Maine is freeing a river from dams that have devastated eleven Read More
Maine Lakes at Risk from LePage Administration
Report Documents Damage to DEP’s Lake Protection Efforts NRCM Press Release The Natural Resources Council of Maine (NRCM) today released an investigative report documenting damage caused to the State of Maine’s lake protection efforts under the Administration of Governor LePage. Although Maine’s lakes are among our state’s most valuable natural resources, the NRCM report finds Read More
Official or Not, Roxanne Quimby’s Park Vision Taking Shape
by John Holyoke, BDN staff Bangor Daily News column TOWNSHIP 2 RANGE 8, EAST OF BAXTER PEAK, Maine — Lucas St. Clair clearly has heard the question before. And he’s got plenty of answers that he’s happy to share. He also realizes that sometimes, it’s best to simply stand back and let Mother Nature do Read More
Hunting Access Energizes Plan for National Park
Kennebec Journal editorial A decade ago, “Ban Roxanne” bumper stickers were a common sight from Greenville to Millinocket, and the prospect of a national park in the Katahdin Region looked dim. In spite of the opposition — largely from sportsmen, snowmobilers and the forest products industry — Elliotsville Plantation Inc., the group formed by Roxanne Read More
Creature Feature: New England Cottontail Rabbit
The New England cottontail rabbit, also known as the brush rabbit, woods rabbit, or coney, occupies only 14% of its native range from southeastern New York to southern Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. To the north is the domain of the snowshoe hare; to the south lives the Eastern cottontail, which was introduced to New England in the early twentieth century and is now more common.
Roxanne Quimby’s Son Offers New Hope for National Park Plan
Lucas St. Clair, a fisherman and hunter, is working to gain the trust of people in the Katahdin region and to overcome the hostility that his mother engendered. by Deidre Fleming, staff writer Portland Press Herald news story MOUNT CHASE – The man in jeans, a plaid shirt and flip-flops who strolled onto the lawn Read More
Report Details How Climate Change is Harming Freshwater Fishing
Urgent Action Needed to Protect Freshwater Fish, Their Habitats, & Related Economy NRCM and NWF Press Release Climate change is the most serious threat to America’s freshwater fish and urgent action is needed at all levels to preserve key species and their habitats, according to a new report released today by the National Wildlife Federation. Read More
Creature Feature: Rainbow Smelt
Rainbow Smelt Osmerus mordax Cool Fact: Smelt have been fished commercially since the 19th century, with most being landed in Maine waters. One of the great rites of winter in Maine is renting a shack in a smelt camp on the Kennebec River and fishing for smelt through the ice. Warmed by the wood stove Read More
