Stories
On a frigid winter day, University of Maine Farmington professors Julia Daly and Rachel Hovel load up their gear on a sled and head out on skis and snowshoes to Midway Pond near Saddleback Mountain in Western Maine. While this area is well known for outdoor recreation, scientists are also beginning to learn just…
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As Maine’s lobstermen fight national conservation groups over federal gear rules and fishery closures intended to protect endangered whales, they have found fierce allies among the state’s political leaders. That’s left some local advocates for the whales feeling sidelined by the powerful industry. A few weeks ago, lobstermen joined lawmakers to support a bill that…
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If you live in a place where a moth known by the scientific name Lymantria dispar did damage last summer, you probably can’t forget it. In the first significant outbreak in many years, the caterpillars munched their way through wide swaths of forest in Vermont and other northeastern states in 2021. Entire hillsides were stripped of…
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A massive yellow Cat excavator pounded away at a 200-year-old dam in Norwood, Mass., on a recent morning. “The sound of the hydraulic hammer, to me, is one of the best sounds in the world,” said Beth Lambert, head of the Massachusetts Division of Ecological Restoration. “When you hear that hammer, you know that another dam is…
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The same chemical process that ruins your bike chain and eats away at your outdoor grill could help power the electric grid of the future, and perhaps even help save the planet from catastrophic climate change. Company officials from Somerville startup Form Energy are developing batteries powered by rust, and claim their low-cost, long-duration technology can…
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Agricultural and environmental groups are calling on state lawmakers to pass a bill prohibiting sludge spreading in Maine as additional farmers come forward to disclose PFAS contamination on their land or in their water. Click here to listen to the audio version from MainePublic.org. Standing outside of the Maine State House on Wednesday, Brendan Holmes…
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Lakes across the world are getting saltier. New Hampshire is no exception. In New Hampshire, road de-icing salt is the main culprit – that’s the salt we sprinkle on highways in the winter. And climate change is exacerbating salinization – more rain and snow in the winter, along with an increase in freeze and thaw…
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As climate change causes winters to warm in the Northeast, the town of Hanover, N.H., has decided to end a yearly winter tradition for good due to unpredictable weather. Hanover’s annual Occum Pond Party was a keystone event in the town, with ice castles and snow sculptures drawing thousands of participants to celebrate winter on…
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The temperature had finally crept above zero on a recent morning as Johanna Davis and Adam Nordell walked along the snowy path leading to one of three greenhouses on their organic farm in Unity, Maine. The unheated, 3,000-square-foot greenhouse was less frigid, but still cold. Adam sang the praises of spinach as Johanna pulled back…
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A popular seafood ranking guide is considering “red listing” American lobster and other New England fisheries for the danger they pose to endangered North Atlantic right whales. The Monterey Bay Aquarium’s “Seafood Watch” list is used by grocery stores and restaurants like Whole Foods, Red Lobster and Aramark to inform their purchases. But Massachusetts lobstermen are pushing…
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