(As I’ve written before, I like the idea of wind power and offshore wind farms. But the guy this story is about does provide another viewpoint that is worth considering. … But then again …. — KM)
The Herald Gazette: Environmental activist asks court to halt offshore wind power project.
(I found this Maine Public Broadcasting Network story interesting in that they are talking about using seawater, air and electricity to possibly turn the water into amonia and then fuel. It is a long-term project that could go on for a decade before you see cars running on the stuff. Still interesting, though. — KM)
Turning Seawater Into Fuel: Experiment Underway in Rockland.
Posted in Environment, Maine
Tagged amonia, desalination, fuel, Gov. John Baldacci, Matt Simmons, Ocean Energy Institute, Robert West, Rockland, seawater
You have got to check out this story in the Lewiston Sun Journal. And scroll down to the bottom of the story to see a couple photos of this truly palatial ice shack. (Never in my wildest dreams would I have ever believed that I would write a sentence in which “palatial” and “ice shack” would be somehow connected.)
There is no byline on the story posted on the website or I would have added it. Below is the top of the story.
Tanya Ouellette was shopping at the corner store when she overheard a conversation about homeless people living on the frozen lake.
“Those aren’t homeless people; that’s us,” Ouellette said.
She and her husband Kevin spend night after night each winter with all the comforts of home – a full kitchen, wood floors, surround sound, two televisions, a wood stove, a bathroom complete with a shower (no hot water) and a doorbell. Their home just happens to sit on a foot of ice.
“I have the best of both worlds — ‘American Idol’ and ice fishing,” Tanya said.
Click here to read the rest of the story.
Posted in Environment, Maine
Tagged fish, fishing, ice fishing, ice shack, Lewiston Sun Journal
Posted in Environment
Tagged Casco Bay, climate change, ice-out, Portland, Sebago Lake
| (Hope this works to help promote wind power in Maine. — KM) |
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Posted in Economy, Environment, Maine
Tagged environmentalists, wind farms, wind power
(I really, really hope they work out the noise issue. Wind power can be fantastic, but these folks shouldn’t have their lives disrupted. — KM)
Turbines turn into headache for Vinalhaven | Portland Press Herald.
George Smith yesterday again wrote in his DownEast.com blog about the decline of white-tailed deer in northern Maine.
It appears unscrupulous landowners may be just as to blame for the drastic decline of deer as are back-to-back harsh winters and predators such as coyotes and bears. (I blogged about a Chamber of Commerce in Maine that had promoted a tournament for killing coyotes. That shows the level of frustration in the region.)
Personally, one of the more stark passages in the blog read:
At some northern Maine game registration stations, more bear than deer or moose were tagged. For example, the Fish River station registered forty-seven bears, twenty-three moose, and just four deer. The Portage station tagged ninety-two deer in 2007, thirty-one deer in 2008, but only nine deer this year.
I’m pretty certain the “Portage station” is Coffin’s General Store, of which I have written before. The Mom occasionally helps out at the store and she told me in the fall that kill numbers had dropped off drastically, but 92 to nine in just two years is terrible on so many levels.
For those who are non-hunters or anti-hunting, annual deer hunting is significant to the life and livelihood of Mainers. It is a rite of passage for youngsters in which responsibility, gun safety, and an appreciation for the outdoors are taught. It also is a significant economic component for rural and remote areas of the state where unemployment historically has been high. Hunting camps and other lodging, restaurants, gas stations, guides, taxidermist and more feel the pain in a poor hunting season.
Smith writes about the loss of wintering habitat for deer and how a land sale and swap ended up costing the state some of that habitiat.
Smith, the blog’s author, lives in Mount Vernon and is described as “a columnist, TV show host, executive director of the state’s largest sportsmen’s organization, political and public policy consultant, hunter, angler, and avid birder and most proud of his three children and grandson.” He knows that of which he writes.
Click this link to go to George’s Outdoor News blog.
Posted in Economy, Environment, Maine
Tagged bear, Coffin's General Store, coyotes, DownEast Magazine, George Smith, hunting, Portage, white-tailed deer, wintering yards
Many lawmakers and observers said Thursday that Gov. John Baldacci’s final State of the State speech struck the right balance for uncertain times.
“I thought he hit the right tone,” said Rep. Patricia Sutherland, D-Chapman. “He was realistic, with some hope. I think Maine people are ‘cut-to-the-chase’ people, and would accept nothing less from the governor.”
Baldacci highlighted achievements of his seven years in office as well as plans for the future, particularly in the areas of renewable energy, government efficiency, education and forest conservation.
Click here to read the rest of “Baldacci strikes the ‘right tone’ for tough times, observers say” by the Kennebec Journal’s Ethan Wilensky-Lanford.
And click here to read the prepared text of Gov. John Baldacci’s final State of the State speech.
Posted in Economy, Environment, Maine
Tagged 2010 State of the State, government, John Baldacci, Maine
Konbit Sante Cap-Haitien Health Partnership is on track to raise more than $100,000 for its earthquake response fund by the end of the day.
By 2:45 p.m. (EST) the telethon sponsored by Portland city government and news station WGME had raised $25,000, which will be added to the $75,000 already raised for quake relief. The telethon continues to 6:30 p.m. Donors may call 482-5100 to make a pledge.
Click here to read the rest of this story.
Posted in Environment, Maine
Tagged Cap Haitien, earthquake, Konbit Sante, relief, WGME
Here’s another “reporter’s notebook” from the MaineToday Media covering the earthquake in Haiti.
Posted in Environment, Journalism, Maine, News and Newspapers, Newspapers
Tagged aid, earthquake, Haiti, MaineToday Media, Portland Press Herald, reporter's notebook
I was pretty sure I had the answer of the DownEast.com trivia question for the day.
What species of cat originated in Maine?
Answer
The Maine coon cat. The legendary feline was created by natural selection, the Maine climate, and a polyglot gene pool of cats brought back to Maine during the Age of Sail. It is the largest domestic cat in the book.
It is also the Maine state cart. Yes, the Maine state cat. Here’s what the Maine.gov site had on the Maine Coon Cat.
Maine Coon is regarded as a native of the state of Maine. Most Coon Cat breeders believe that the breed originated in matings between pre-existing shorthaired domestic cats and overseas longhairs (perhaps Angora types introduced by New England seamen, or longhairs brought to America by the Vikings).
Maine Coons were well established more than a century ago as a hardy, handsome breed of domestic cat, well equipped to survive the hostile New England winters.
Everything about the Maine Coon points to its adaptation to a harsh climate. Its glossy coat, heavy and water-resistant, is like that of no other breed, and must be felt to be appreciated. It is longer on the ruff, stomach and britches to protect against wet and snow, and shorter on the back and neck to guard against tangling in the underbrush. The coat falls smoothly. The long, bushy tail which the cat wraps around himself when he curls up to sleep can protect him from cold winters. His ears are more heavily furred (both inside and on the tips) than many breeds for protection from the cold, and have a large range of movement. Big, round, tufted feet serve as ‘snow shoes.’ Their large eyes and ears are also survival traits, serving to increase sight and hearing. The relatively long, square muzzle facilitates grasping prey and lapping water from streams and puddles.
Maine Coon Cats are tall, muscular, big-boned cats; males commonly reach 13 to 18 pounds, with females normally weighing about 9 to 12 pounds. Maine Coons don’t achieve their full size until they are three to five years old. Their voices set them apart from other cats; they have a distinctive, chirping trill.
For full disclosure, I am allergic to cats and think they are plotting to kill us all in our sleep. But the Maine Coon Cat is pretty cool. For a cat.
I was so busy the past couple of days passing along links from the home pages of Maine newspapers that I failed to take a look at the landing page set up on the Web site of MaineToday Media’s Portland Press Herald.
Here’s a link to the landing page or you can move from the Portland Press Herald’s home page by clicking on the icon showing a crying Haitian child and the text: “Haiti Quake: Mainers respond to catastrophe.”
That will bring you to a landing page with a multimedia presentation. There are local stories and commentary, wire stories, tweets, slideshows, and information on how to donate to the Haiti relief effort. It’s not a bad collection of what’s been written by MaineToday Media so far on the earthquake in Haiti.
The one thing it lacks – at least from a cursory standpoint – is video. But that is highly understandable under the circumstances; newspapers are not set up to broadcast video via satellite and getting a memory card to the mainland to be edited and sent to the MaineToday Media websites wouldn’t make sense. My hope is that the reporters and photographers – perhaps a videographer – are taking video so that can be added to the landing page later.
I’ll post other landing pages if I spot one by a non-MaineToday Media paper.
Posted in Environment, Journalism, Maine, News and Newspapers, Newspapers
Tagged aid, earthquake, Haiti, MaineToday Media, Portland Press Herald, relief
CAP HAITIEN, Haiti — The numbers are slippery; information is hard to get a handle on.
According to Justinian Hospital’s medical director, the hospital saw 130 patients through the weekend who were earthquake victims. At the end of Tuesday, he didn’t have solid numbers for Monday or Tuesday.
There were reports that a gymnasium in the city was set up as a shelter for victims. There may be 300 people there. Or 1,500. Or nobody. And it’s unclear who’s in charge – if anyone is.
Amid the confusion, Nate Nickerson is trying to coordinate efforts to get aid – particularly U.S. medical personnel. Nickerson is executive director of Portland-based Konbit Sante, a nonprofit that has been working with partners to improve northern Haiti’s health care system at Justinian Hospital and at a clinic at Fort St. Michel, Cap Haitien’s poorest neighborhood.
Here’s a link to the rest of “Lack of information slows efforts to aid quake refugees” by the Portland Press Herald’s Matt Wickenheiser.
Posted in Environment, Journalism, Maine, News and Newspapers, Newspapers
Tagged aid, Cap Haitien, earthquake, Haiti, Konbit Sante, nonprofit
Here’s a link to “City helps sponsor telethon for Konbit Sante.”
Here’s a link to “Maine shipwreck hunter eyes Haiti relief.”
Letters From Away 