January 16, 2026 (Augusta, ME) – The U.S. House and Senate have passed a bipartisan budget for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and other environmental agencies that largely avoids drastic cuts proposed by the Trump Administration and its allies in Congress. Environmental advocates in Maine said they appreciated the work to build a compromise but noted that even with this agreement, the EPA’s FY2026 budget will now be at an all-time low. The spending Read More
Environmental Protection Agency
EPA’s Proposed Changes to Clean Water Act Would Gut Protections for Wetlands
For more than half a century, the Clean Water Act has helped curb pollution flowing into our rivers, lakes, and streams. And now the safeguards that are embedded in this landmark environmental law are at risk due to changes being proposed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin. The Clean Water Act Read More
New “Damaging Maine” Report Details Impacts of Draconian Cuts to US EPA Budget
(Augusta, ME) – A new report issued today details how the U.S. House Appropriations Committee’s FY26 budget proposal would put Maine’s clean air and water at risk, limit clean-up of old industrial sites, and halt important scientific research that is essential for safeguarding public health. The dramatic cuts being proposed to the U.S. Environmental Protection Read More
Massive EPA Proposal to Weaken Environmental Protections Would Harm Maine’s Clean Air and Water
March 13, 2025 (Augusta, ME) — Yesterday, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin released a massive, broadside attack on rules that protect public health, the climate, and our environment from air pollution, water pollution, and toxic emissions from fossil fuel power plants. On the eve of addressing a major energy conference in Read More
NRCM Urges Senators Collins, King Not to Undermine Senate Confirmation Process for Nominees
November 25, 2024 (Augusta, ME) — Maine’s leading environmental advocacy organization today urged Senators Susan Collins and Angus King to insist that the full, deliberative “advice and consent” process be pursued in the U.S. Senate for nominees to federal agencies that play a critical role in helping protect Maine’s environment. The Natural Resources Council of Read More
Why Limiting Pollution from Dirty Power Plants Helps Maine
Believe it or not, power plants in the U.S. are still polluting the air we breathe, hurting our health, and fueling climate change. Pollution from their smokestacks, particularly those fueled by coal, is one of the main sources of carbon emissions and other toxic pollution that makes our food sources unsafe and can also lead Read More
Limits on Tailpipe Pollution Will Deliver Mainers Cleaner Air and More Choices
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today unveiled new stricter limits on tailpipe pollution from cars and trucks that will deliver cleaner air, reduce carbon pollution, and pave the way toward broader adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) in Maine, according to the state’s leading environmental advocacy organization. The Natural Resources Council of Maine released the following Read More
U.S. Supreme Court Decision Limiting EPA’s Ability to Reduce Pollution Will Harm Maine’s Clean Air and Climate
Augusta, ME (June 30, 2022) – Maine conservationists are expressing outrage over a decision issued today by the U.S. Supreme Court to dismantle the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s ability to limit carbon pollution that is accelerating the impacts of climate change. The Natural Resources Council of Maine, one of the state’s largest and oldest conservation Read More
Support of LD 125, An Act To Prohibit the Aerial Spraying of Glyphosate and Other Synthetic Herbicides for the Purpose of Silviculture
Greetings, Senator Dill, Representative O’Neil and Members of the Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry Committee. I am Melanie Sturm, the Forests and Wildlife Director at the Natural Resources Council of Maine, and I am providing testimony in support of LD 125. Glyphosate is the world’s most widely used herbicide. With increased use comes increased risk of Read More
