NRCM news statement “Today is a great day for the people, fish, and wildlife, of the Penobscot River. The removal of the Veazie Dam will give Maine’s largest river a new lease on life while maintaining hydropower production. The Penobscot River has worked hard for Maine people for hundreds of years. It’s time for us Read More
Penobscot River Restoration Trust
On Tuesday, June 14, 2016, hundreds of people gathered in Howland, Maine, to mark and celebrate the completion of the last major milestone in the Penobscot River Restoration Project, widely considered one of the largest, most innovative river restoration projects in the nation.
The completion fulfilled the Penobscot Project’s goal of significantly improving access to 2,000 miles of Maine’s largest river for eleven species of native sea-run fish, while maintaining energy through increased hydropower generation at other dams in the watershed.
The project is already showing success. More than two million river herring are expected to surge past the former Veazie dam site this year, and in just the past few weeks more than 225 Atlantic salmon have also entered the river. “It is thrilling to see the river rebounding since the Penobscot Project reconnected the Gulf of Maine to more than 2,000 miles of upstream waters,” says Don Hudson, Chairman of the Penobscot River Restoration Trust. “The fish know just what to do, and the eagles, otters, wildlife watchers, boaters, and fishermen do, too.”
Dam’s Demolition Renews Hopes for Restored Penobscot River Fish Runs
by Susan Sharon MPBN news story In a scene repeated from the Penobscot River last year, when the Great Works Dam was demolished, the historic removal of another large dam began, in sections, today. This time it was the 830-foot-long Veazie Dam at head of tide in Eddington: first, a small trickle of water as Read More
Construction Workers Begin Veazie Dam Removal
by Caitlin Burchill WABI-TV news story Eddington – For more than a decade, the Penobscot Indian Nation, along with conservation groups, hydropower companies and state and federal agencies have worked together to come up with a plan to restore sea-run fisheries while maintaining hydropower. Monday was a huge step as crews began to breach the Read More
Veazie Dam Removal Project Gets $1 Million Boost
by Dawn Gagnon, BDN staff Bangor Daily News news story VEAZIE, Maine — The organization behind a key conservation project on the Penobscot River has been awarded a major grant from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, members of the state’s congressional delegation announced last week. The Penobscot River Restoration Trust will receive a $1 Read More
A Great Day as Dam Removal Begins
Hundreds watch the start of a Penobscot River project viewed as a model for fish and waterway restoration. by Tom Bell, staff writer Portland Press Herald news story INDIAN ISLAND – Bill Townsend is an old man, at 84, but he’s steady enough on his feet to walk down a muddy bank of the Penobscot Read More
LePage Should Have Attended Dam Ceremony
A mutually beneficial compromise that brings diverse interests together should be celebrated. Portland Press Herald editorial On Monday, Maine showed the world how to advance economic and environmental interests at the same time with a comprehensive project that involved state, federal and tribal governments along with private power companies and nonprofit groups all working together. Read More
Dam Removal to Help Restore Spawning Grounds
by Murray Carpenter New York Times news story BRADLEY, Me. — Under a bright sky here, a convoy of heavy equipment rolled onto the bed of the Penobscot River on Monday to smash the Great Works Dam, a barrier that has blocked the river for nearly two centuries. Before the destruction began, a tribal elder Read More
Saving a River, and Its Species
New York Times editorial On Monday morning, wrecking crews began demolishing the 1,000-foot-long Great Works Dam in Bradley, Me., the first step in a multiyear effort to restore ancient fish runs on the Penobscot River. This is a very welcome development for the environment and a tribute to the willing collaboration of many players, public Read More
Penobscot River Restoration Project Begins Removal of Great Works Dam
Penobscot River Restoration Trust news release Old Town, Maine—On Monday, June 11, demolition of the Penobscot River’s Great Works Dam begins. This is a major step toward allowing the river to flow free from Old Town to the Gulf of Maine for the first time in generations. For centuries, dams along the Penobscot River have Read More
