Penobscot River Restoration Trust Awarded Funds to Remove Fish Passage Barriers Penobscot River Restoration Trust Old Town and Augusta, ME: Today, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) announced that it will invest $6.1 million through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to help rebuild the sea-run fisheries of Maine’s Penobscot River. A grant to Read More
Protecting Wildlife
Endangered Species Protections Extended to Atlantic Salmon on Three Major Maine Rivers
by Anne Ravana Maine Public Radio news story The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Fisheries Service today extended endangered species protections to Atlantic salmon in the Penobscot, Kennebec, and Androscoggin rivers and their watersheds. The news has not been well received by some Maine officials. The state’s Department of Read More
Canadian Lynx To Benefit From Habitat in Maine
by Susan Sharon Maine Public Radio news story Large landowners are disappointed, but Maine environmental groups are applauding a revised decision by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to designate 9,400 square miles of northern Maine as critical habitat for the Canada lynx. Three years ago the Service issued a decision excluding Maine timberlands from Read More
Using Our Muscles to Move Mussels on the Sebasticook
NRCM staff and members have had the opportunity to work with others to help relocate mussels in the Sebasticook River over the past two weeks. Many of those who volunteered wanted to share their experiences with others and have done so below. We hope that if you volunteered on this project as well that you Read More
Creature Feature: Atlantic Salmon
The Atlantic salmon is an anadromous fish, which means it spends the majority of its lifetime in the ocean, but returns to spawn in the same freshwater river or stream where it was born. In Maine, salmon begin returning to their home rivers between March and November, with a peak migration during June and July. Unlike their Pacific cousins, Atlantic salmon do not die after spawning, and can return year after year to reproduce.
Creature Feature: Yellow Lampmussel
The empty shells scattered along the shallow edges of the Kennebec, Sebasticook, and Penobscot rivers are not clams, but the remains of freshwater mussels like the yellow lampmussel. The shells may have been left behind by an otter, muskrat, or raccoon after a meal. By serving as food for river mammals, filtering the water for their own food, and linking to fish populations, freshwater mussels play a unique role in river ecosystems.
Bald Eagles: Do Not Disturb
Morning Sentinel editorial With a seven-foot wingspan, a dazzling white head and elegant black wings that beat oh-so-sedately as the bird makes its way through the air, a bald eagle sighting is a soul-stirring moment. This bird is not in a hurry — why should it be? It lords over everything else in the sky, Read More
Down East Region Spared 84-Mile Transmission Line
NRCM news release Emera, the parent company of Bangor Hydro, has decided not to move forward at this time with a proposed 170-foot wide, 84-mile transmission line that would have bisected Hancock and Washington Counties, running between Orrington, north of Bangor, and Baileyville, on the New Brunswick border. This massive new transmission line was strongly Read More
Victory for Maine People, Undeveloped Lakes and Forests and Prime Salmon Rivers Downeast
Facing certain defeat in front of the Board of Environmental Protection, Bangor Hydro Electric has withdrawn its application for a new transmission line across Hancock and Washington Counties in Downeast Maine, which was strongly opposed by the Natural Resources Council of Maine and citizens from throughout the state and region. “This is great news for Read More
