This year, the Natural Resources Council of Maine celebrates 60 years of protecting the nature of Maine. We are making time to pause and reflect on what we have accomplished together: clean air, clean water, and an abundance of special places that provide recreational opportunities that many of us love, like hiking, swimming, paddling, and Read More
Penobscot River
New Laws Deliver Landmark Protections for Sustenance Fishing and Clean Rivers
NRCM news release (Augusta, ME) — Maine’s tribes will receive long-sought water quality protections for sustenance fishing under a bill signed into law by Governor Janet Mills today. Along with an upgrade of legal protections for more than 400 miles of rivers and streams that was signed into law on Tuesday, it will represent the Read More
Landmark Bill Would Protect Sustenance Fishing Rights in Maine’s Tribal Waters
May 29, 2019 (Augusta, ME) – Under a bill proposed by Governor Janet Mills that earned broad-based support during a public hearing today, Maine’s tribes will receive long-sought water quality protections for legal sustenance fishing rights provided to the tribes in the Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act of 1980. The bill (LD 1775) addresses an Read More
Bill Would Upgrade Clean Water Protections for Maine Rivers
News Release May 23, 2019 (Augusta, ME) — More than 400 miles of Maine’s rivers and streams will receive increased legal protection under a bill (LD 1743) that will receive a public hearing today. Of particular significance, the bill includes critical portions of Maine’s largest river, the Penobscot, and 200 miles of trout streams flowing Read More
The Perfect Spring Ski on the Penobscot River Trails
The Penobscot River Trails provided a new and alluring destination for an April 12 cross-country ski, right before spring break. I drove north on I-95, passing miles of mostly bare ground and wondered if there would be enough snow outside of Medway to make this long drive worth it. About 12 miles north on Route Read More
Opposition to LD 1287, An Act To Protect the Penobscot River and Penobscot Bay from Mercury Contamination
Senator Carson, Representative Tucker, and distinguished members of the Environment and Natural Resources Committee: My name is Nick Bennett, I reside in Hallowell, and I am the staff scientist for the Natural Resources Council of Maine (NRCM). NRCM is Maine’s largest environmental advocacy group with more than 20,000 members and supporters. I am testifying in Read More
LD 817, Advance Restoration of Penobscot
Senator Carson, Representative Tucker, and members of the Environment and Natural Resources Committee. My name is Nick Bennett, and I am the Staff Scientist for the Natural Resources Council of Maine (NRCM). NRCM is Maine’s largest environmental advocacy group with more than 20,000 members and supporters. I am testifying in support of LD 817. As Read More
DEP’s River and Stream Upgrade Proposal is Good for Maine
By Ray Owen, Special to the BDN Bangor Daily News op-ed I have spent much my life working to improve Maine’s environment. I was a professor of wildlife ecology at the University of Maine for 32 years, commissioner of the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife for four, and chaired Maine’s former Land Use Read More
Support of the Nomination of Jerry Reid to Serve as DEP Commissioner
Senator Carson, Representative Tucker, and distinguished members of the Committee on Environment and Natural Resources. My name is Pete Didisheim. I am the Advocacy Director for the Natural Resources Council of Maine, and I appreciate the opportunity to testify in support of the nomination of Jerry Reid to serve as Commissioner of the Department of Read More
