Launching a Sustainability Accelerator
As the Maine Climate Council concluded work on its climate action plan last November, one legislator issued what Sen. Anne Carney (D-Cape Elizabeth) recalled as a “plaintive plea: ‘We have to figure out how...
Author: Marina Schauffler
Ending the ‘Silent Spring’ on Commercial Forest Lands
In timber operations, like this one in Allagash, herbicides are typically applied after clearcutting to kill emergent hardwood species and foster growth of planted forests. Photo by Hilton Hafford. At a public hearing...
Conserving Land to Save Our Future
The ethereal refrain of the white-throated sparrow runs through memories of childhood. My own children have rarely heard its call. Bird populations in the U.S. have plummeted since 1970, with 1 in 4 birds...
Turning away from Fossil Fuels
In the energy transition underway, Maine has strong assets and lingering liabilities. The Legislature and the Mills administration have set ambitious goals for reducing greenhouse emissions and increasing reliance on renewable energy. The state...
Don’t Bet Your Boiler on Natural Gas
Amid a torrent of public comments at a recent Rockland City Council meeting to discuss a proposed Midcoast natural gas pipeline, a teenager’s honest expression of bewilderment stood out: “I am surprised by this...
Maine Needs Major Utility Reform
Central Maine Power’s most recent debacle, attempting to charge solar developers millions more for grid interconnections despite signed contracts, was shocking but not surprising from a utility that has sought for decades to undermine...
‘Time for Boldness:’ Acting on climate at every governmental level
It was a strange scene to encounter on a January night, sitting in my car among more than 100 other parked vehicles, all populated but dark, at a drive-in town meeting. Townspeople had gathered,...
Cultivating Innovation: Supporting Agroforestry
Agroforestry, an age-old concept, could provide a path to Maine’s future. Part of the regenerative agriculture movement, it involves an integrated approach to cultivating trees with crops and – sometimes – livestock. These diversified...
