Tackling climate change, food insecurity, and economic waste one meal at a time Licia Goodridge knows just how expensive food waste is. Since food is mostly water, which weighs eight pounds per gallon, and hauling contracts are based on weight, she knew her school district was wasting money transporting something to the dump that could Read More
Sustainability
Our vision of sustainability in Maine is ensuring a healthy future for life on Earth. Maine’s clean and healthy environment strengthens the state’s economy and is central to our way of life. Holding polluting corporations accountable through systemic changes in local, state, and federal policies is the key to creating a more healthy, prosperous, sustainable future for us all.
Maine at the Cutting Edge of Compost Technology
By Abigail Curtis, BDN Staff Bangor Daily News news story Most people don’t spend a lot of time thinking about what happens to waste once it’s been thrown out or flushed away. But Mark King and the other members of the Maine Compost Team are not like most people. King, an environmental specialist with the Read More
Portland Students’ Ocean Litter Project Wins Conservation Award
By Kate Irish Collins The Forecaster news story PORTLAND — In their bid to protect the ocean from litter, two students at King Middle School have won the People’s Choice Award from the Natural Resources Council of Maine. The council held its annual conservation leadership awards ceremony Oct. 19 in Bath, where Addie Farmer, 13, Read More
New Law Bans Lead Fishing Tackle to Protect Loons
By The Associated Press Bangor Daily News news story A new Maine law bans lead fishing tackle in hopes of protecting loons. The Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife says keeping lead fishing weights out of Maine waters will better the birds’ survival and spur population growth across the Northeast. Ingesting lead fishing tackle is Read More
Brunswick Adopts New Pesticide Rules
Original ordinance from 2007 limited use in town by Juliette Laaka Times Record news story Brunswick will now give preference to organic pesticides over chemical treatments on all town-owned land, thanks to ordinance amendments adopted by the town council on Monday. The original land care ordinance, adopted in 2007, limited the use of pesticides on Read More
Belfast Becomes Latest City to Ban Plastic Bags, Polystyrene
By Nick McCrea, BDN Staff Bangor Daily News news story BELFAST, Maine — Paper or canvas? Shoppers in Belfast will need to remember to bring their own bags from home, or get used to paper, because plastic is on the way out. Belfast city councilors approved a citywide ban on single-use plastic shopping bags and Read More
Waterville Group Eyes Portland Blueprint to Propose Fee on Plastic, Paper Bags
The Sustain Mid Maine Coalition is eyeing regulations for city bags, but Mayor Nick Isgro says he’s not in favor of fees and calls it ‘an incredibly controversial issue.’ by Colin Ellis, Staff Writer Central Maine newspapers news story WATERVILLE — A group planning to recommend city regulations on single-use shopping bags in Waterville may Read More
Gov. LePage Forges Ahead with Bid to Stop Lucrative Sales of “Nips” Liquor Bottles
They contribute to drinking and driving, he says, but they also produce millions in state revenue annually and support jobs at a Lewiston distillery. By Kevin Miller, Staff Writer Portland Press Herald news story HALLOWELL — The LePage administration is asking Maine’s liquor commission to end sales of miniature “nips” bottles, a move that could Read More
LePage Uncorks Plan to End Sale of Nips in Maine
By Christopher Cousins, BDN Staff Bangor Daily News news story AUGUSTA, Maine — The state’s Liquor and Lottery Commission will consider ending the sale of 50-milliliter liquor bottles in Maine following a promise by Gov. Paul LePage to do so if the Legislature enacted a bill that adds the containers to Maine’s bottle redemption program. Read More