New York Times editorial On Monday, a demolition crew will begin removing the Veazie Dam on the Penobscot River just above Bangor, Me. The Veazie is the lowest of the Penobscot dams and closest to the river’s mouth on the Maine coast. It is also critical to the entire Penobscot River watershed, which covers nearly Read More
fisheries restoration
‘Ah, Freedom’: Historic Penobscot Dam Removal Begins
The river restoration project will allow fish access to spawn deep in the heart of Maine. by Tom Bell, staff writer Portland Press Herald news story EDDINGTON — A backhoe equipped with a big jackhammer smashed through the top of the Veazie Dam on Monday morning, sending chunks of concrete and a spray of water Read More
Lower Kennebec River a Secret Jewel for Paddlers
Waterville to Gardiner stretch ‘kind of a little gem of a river trip that’s very accessible for people that live here,’s says state official by Paul Koenig, staff writer Morning Sentinel news story The paddling trip from Waterville to Augusta, or even farther south to Gardiner, is an underrated trip compared to more popular waterways, Read More
Return of Alewives on St. Croix River Celebrated
by John Holyoke, BDN staff Bangor Daily News news story BAILEYVILLE, Maine — For nearly 20 years, conservationists and, at times, state natural resource agencies, have sought to open the St. Croix River watershed to alewives. Those river herring had their passage at dam fishways officially blocked in 1995 due to concerns that their presence Read More
Sebasticook to the Sea: Alewives’ Perilous Lives Crucial to Ecosystem, Economy
Matt Hongoltz-Hetling, MaineTodayMedia staff Morning Sentinel news story BENTON — Alewives are little fish with a big story. Each year, billions of the silver fish hatch out of eggs in the cool waters of the Sebasticook River and embark on a dangerous journey to the sea and back again. Those that return must make it Read More
A Home Run for Maine Alewives
The Benton Alewife Festival is set to celebrate a record return of fish hatched from eggs that were laid in 2009. By Matt Hongoltz-Hetling, Morning Sentinel Portland Press Herald news story BENTON – Alewives are on pace for a record run in Benton, whose residents will celebrate their relationship with the migratory fish Saturday during Read More
Alewives Swimming Up Maine’s St. Croix River
The Associated Press Boston Globe news story BAILEYVILLE, Maine (AP) — Alewives are expected to swim upriver of the Grand Falls dam on eastern Maine’s St. Croix River this week for the first time in 22 years. Lawmakers passed a law this spring allowing the fish, also known as river herring, to swim upriver of Read More
NRCM Testimony In Support of LD 72, An Act to Open the St. Croix River to River Herring and Opposed to LD 584, An Act to Provide for Passage of River Herring on the St. Croix River in Accordance with an Adaptive Management Plan
by Nick Bennett, NRCM Staff Scientist and Watersheds Project Director Good morning Senator Johnson, Representative Kumiega and members of the Marine Resources Committee. My name is Nick Bennett. I am Staff Scientist for the Natural Resources Council of Maine (NRCM). NRCM is Maine’s largest environmental advocacy group with over 12,000 members and supporters. I am testifying in support Read More
Veazie Dam Removal Project Gets $1 Million Boost
by Dawn Gagnon, BDN staff Bangor Daily News news story VEAZIE, Maine — The organization behind a key conservation project on the Penobscot River has been awarded a major grant from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, members of the state’s congressional delegation announced last week. The Penobscot River Restoration Trust will receive a $1 Read More
