By Beth Brogan, BDN Staff Bangor Daily News news story BRUNSWICK, Maine — The Brunswick Town Council voted unanimously Monday evening to ban polystyrene foam, or Styrofoam, food containers beginning in October. The vote followed a public hearing before a standing-room-only crowd at which 16 people spoke, all but one in support of the ban, Read More
sustainability
Women Fighting on Environmental Front Lines
Berta Caceres led the battle against a huge hydroelectric dam in Honduras until she was gunned down this month. by Jesse McMahon and Jennifer Curtis, members of the NRCM Rising Leadership Team Portland Press Herald op-ed To mark Woman’s History Month, we honor women around the world who are fighting for climate action, for clean air to Read More
Teaching and Living Sustainability in Falmouth Elementary Schools
I am a first grade teacher in the largest K-5 elementary school in the state, Falmouth Elementary School. I have brought many sustainability efforts to the children and adults at the school. This endeavor began more than 10 years ago with the introduction by ecomaine of single-stream recycling in Falmouth. Once the program was available in Read More
Maine Farmers’ Markets: Not Just a Summer Thing!
Let’s be honest: The easiest time to fall in love with Maine farmers’ markets is amidst the luscious towers of tomatoes and melons in August, not the coolers of meats and crates of root vegetables in January. You might not have even realized that there IS a farmers’ market near you in January! But every Read More
Bag Free, Plastic Foam Ban Take Effect Tuesday in South Portland
The City Council approved the ordinances unanimously last September. By Kelley Bouchard, Staff Writer Portland Press Herald news story SOUTH PORTLAND — Two new ordinances take effect Tuesday, imposing a ban on plastic foam food containers and a 5-cent fee on all single-use paper or plastic shopping bags. The City Council approved the ordinances unanimously Read More
Will a Ban on Food in Landfills Finally Spur Maine to Boost Recycling?
by Christopher Burns, BDN staff Bangor Daily News news story Maine needs to decide what it’s going to do about the food in its waste stream. Food and other organics comprise 43 percent of Maine’s residential waste, more than paper, plastic, glass and metal. Yet, only about 5 percent of organics are composted, leaving much Read More
Plastic and Foam Containers Have an Impact, in Maine and Globally
Do you know that the plastic bag you innocently accept when the cashier hands you your groceries could actually be the death of you? I first learned about marine litter when I was 13. I was given an inscribed copy of the book Tracking Trash: Flotsam, Jetsam and the Science of Ocean Motion by Loree Read More
Group Wants MDI to Go Fossil Fuel Free Within 15 Years
By Susan Sharon MPBN news story It’s official — the United Nations’ World Meteorological Organization has confirmed what other agencies including NASA have said earlier: 2015 was the hottest year on record. The global surface temperature is 1 degree Celsius above the preindustrial era, which the agency says makes voluntary commitments reached in the Paris Read More
Natural Resources Council of Maine Awards “Protecting the Nature of Maine” Grants to Eight Middle Schools
The Natural Resources Council of Maine (NRCM) has awarded grants to eight Maine middle schools to fund projects that engage students in protecting Maine’s environment. These grants will help students establish nature trails, set up school-wide recycling initiatives, propagate and plant native plants on which endangered birds depend, and much more. Some of these grants Read More
