Small victories need to be celebrated, particularly when you’re up against the monstrous plastic industry and fossil fuel companies. Store managers can now allow customers to bring in reusable shopping bags, according to the COVID19 Prevention Checklist Industry Guidance provided by the Maine Department for Economic and Community Development. This is a small but meaningful Read More
plastic pollution
Maine Environment Spring 2020 Newsletter
Maine Environment Spring 2020: What’s Inside! In this issue of Maine Environment, we feature a story about the 30-year legacy of our former Forests & Wildlife Director Cathy Johnson, who retired earlier this year. You can read the full version of the story online. Cathy helped protect Moosehead Lake from a massive development proposal by Plum Read More
Participate in Plastic-free July to Help Curb Plastic Pollution
Plastic is polluting our environment, killing birds and sea creatures, and contributing to our climate crisis. But, did you know that reducing plastic is something you can do to support public health, the local economy, and human rights, too? We need to work together to turn off the tidal wave of single-use plastic waste. Plastic-free Read More
Earth Week 2020 Daily Resources
April 22, 2020, marked the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. To celebrate how far we have come in protecting our environment, staff at the Natural Resources Council of Maine created daily digital care packages from across our program areas that we provided to our members for each day of Earth Week. These resources—informative webinars, inspiration Read More
Fossil Fuel Companies and Plastic Industry Exploiting Health Crisis for Profit
There is a lot to worry about these days. The COVID-19 pandemic has made us rightfully worried about the health and economic well-being of ourselves and our loved ones. This new worry comes on top of our existing concerns about our environment and the challenges that future generations will face due to climate change, plastic Read More
50 Ideas to Celebrate 50 Years of Earth Day
These are challenging times and it’s important to celebrate when we can, even if we cannot do so in person. For example, April 22 marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. That’s something to celebrate, for sure! The Natural Resources Council of Maine had been in the process of creating events with our members and Read More
In Support of LD 2104, An Act to Support and Increase the Recycling of Packaging
Senator Carson, Representative Tucker, and members of the Joint Standing Committee on Environment and Natural Resources, my name is Sarah Nichols and I am the Sustainable Maine Director for the Natural Resources Council of Maine (NRCM). I appreciate this opportunity to speak in strong support of LD 2104. I have provided a folder attached to Read More
Bill Would Help Save Maine’s Struggling Recycling Programs
NRCM news release Augusta, ME (February 25, 2020) – A bill being heard by lawmakers on Wednesday will help save taxpayers money and improve Maine’s struggling recycling programs by asking large corporations to share in responsibility for managing the flood of wasteful packaging entering the state. LD 2104 would apply a proven solution called Extended Read More
Boothbay Makes Strides in Reducing Plastic Pollution
With financial assistance from the Natural Resources Council of Maine (NRCM), the Boothbay Region Committee for a Plastic-Free Peninsula (PFP) began our activities in 2019. Our first project aimed to reduce the usage of single-use plastic bags. We decided to focus first on young people and sponsored a table at an annual Earth Day fair Read More