News & Noteworthy June 20, 2019 Here’s your latest round-up of news from the past week. Soaring on Solar The solar bill that our clean energy team has worked on for years is awaiting the governor’s signature after being approved by the House and Senate, as was the expansion of the state’s Renewable Portfolio Standard. Read More
bag ordinances
Maine Bans Single-use Plastic Bags
Makes Switch to Reusable Shopping Bags NRCM news release June 17, 2019 (Augusta, ME) – Maine has become the third state in the nation to ban the use of single-use plastic shopping bags statewide. The move comes shortly after the state became the first in the nation to ban polystyrene foam food containers. Today, Governor Read More
Maine Bans Single-Use Plastic Bags
In 2019, with Governor Janet Mills’ signature, Maine became the third state in the nation to ban single-use plastic bags. The plastic bag ban came to fruition shortly after the passage of a neighboring bill that made our state the first in the nation to ban polystyrene foam food containers. The bill was a collaborative Read More
NRCM Testimony in Support of LD 1532, An Act To Eliminate Single-use Plastic Carry-out Bags
Senator Carson, Representative Tucker, and members of the Joint Standing Committee on Environment and Natural Resources, my name is Sarah Lakeman and I am the Sustainable Maine Project Director for the Natural Resources Council of Maine (NRCM). I appreciate this opportunity to speak to you in strong support of LD 1532. NRCM has worked alongside Read More
Conservationists, Grocers, and Retailers Join Forces to Support a Statewide Ban on Single-use Plastic Bags
Proposed bill receives legislative hearing Wednesday, April 24 News release by the Natural Resources Council of Maine, Retail Association of Maine, and the Maine Grocers & Food Producers Association April 23, 2019 (Augusta, ME) – A bill that would address the growing plastic pollution problem by banning the use of single-use plastic shopping bags statewide Read More
Reducing Waste One Cup (of Coffee) at a Time
On April 2, 2019, Tandem Coffee Roasters launched an ambitious initiative to drastically reduce waste at both of their locations in Portland. The company has lowered all drink prices by 25 cents and started charging customers 25 cents if they need a single-use cup for their drink order. The main intention is to get people Read More
Maine Lawmakers Should Pass Plastic Bag Ban
A product so cheap it can be thrown away is creating expensive problems. Portland Press Herald editorial Most people laughed in 1954 when the editor of a trade journal called Modern Plastics told an industry conference that the future of their business “is in the trash can.” But they weren’t laughing nine years later, when Read More
Maine Could Be Among First in U.S. to Ban Plastic Bags Statewide
With 20 communities already restricting them, and more on the way, the state may take California’s environmental cue. by Gillian Graham, Staff Writer Portland Press Herald news story The way Rep. Nicole Grohoski sees it, the time has come to do something about plastic shopping bags. The first-term Democrat from Ellsworth is one of three Read More
Ellsworth the Latest Maine Town to Consider Banning Plastic Shopping Bags
By Bill Trotter, BDN Staff Bangor Daily News news story A proposal to bar city retailers from distributing single-use plastic shopping bags had its first airing Monday night before city councilors. The ban, if adopted, would add Ellsworth to the ranks of more than a dozen municipalities in Maine that have adopted restrictions on the Read More
