by John Holyoke Bangor Daily News news story Twelve years ago — on July 1, 1999 — a crowd gathered on the banks of the Kennebec River in Augusta to watch as Edwards Dam was breached. First a trickle. Then a torrent. For the first time in 162 years, a 17-mile stretch of the Kennebec Read More
Great Works Dam
Great Works Dam Starts to Come Down Monday as Part of Effort to Revive the Penobscot
by Nick McCrea, BDN staff Bangor Daily News news story OLD TOWN, Maine — When the demolition of the Great Works dam starts Monday, it will be the first visible step in a 13-year effort to open nearly 1,000 miles of habitat to 11 species of sea-run fish that haven’t had open, easy access to Read More
Celebrating a Big Moment for the Penobscot River
by Bill Houston Bangor Daily News op-ed Maine’s largest and arguably most impressive river, the Penobscot, is about to take a major leap toward a new future â and what a grand future it will be. As removal of the Great Works Dam begins this Monday, I will be there to celebrate the Penobscot and Read More
LePage Objects to Long-Planned Removal of Penobscot River Dam
by Susan Sharon MPBN news story Conservation groups, members of the Penobscot Nation and federal officials are preparing for an historic occasion next week when the first of two dams on the Penobscot River is demolished: the 200-year-old Great Works Dam. One dignitary who won’t be attending is Gov. Paul LePage. Instead the Maine Commissioner Read More
It’s About “Dam” Time
I have worked at NRCM for more than 16 years. During that time I have seen a lot of amazing progress made by NRCM and others to protect Maine’s air, land, water, and wildlife. I have attended press conferences, legislative bill signings, member events, public hearings, annual meetings, and many other activities related to our Read More
Saving Salmon
New York Times editorial Conservationists and business interests are at loggerheads so often these days that it is heartening when they can reach an agreement that produces good outcomes for both – and for the environment. A coalition of environmental groups, an Indian tribe, government agencies and a power company recently announced an agreement that Read More
A River Reborn
Agreement could lead to dam removals and restoration of fish runs by Misty Edgecomb Bangor Daily News news story OLD TOWN – In what conservationists are calling the biggest restoration project north of the Everglades, two dams will be removed from the lower Penobscot River. Representatives of a broad coalition including the Penobscot Nation, environmental Read More
Penobscot Promise
Bangor Daily News editorial Usually when a project is described as “unprecedented” and “visionary” it isn’t either. In the case of the multifaceted plan announced yesterday to remove two dams and improve five others along the Penobscot River to open hundreds of miles of habitat for sea-run fish, the glowing adjectives are appropriate. First, the Read More