Articles
Spruce Head lobster facilities lacked plans, paid fines
Recently the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that four Spruce Head lobster facilities have agreed to pay $3,000 each for having inadequate oil spill prevention plans. Under expedited settlements, Maine Coast Seafood, McLoon’s Wharf LLC, Spruce Head Fisherman’s Co-op and the William Atwood Lobster Company agreed to create approved Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure
Salty Dogs: Quirks, Companionship and Sea Tales
Right now throughout coastal Maine, dozens of dogs lie close to a heat source, seemingly asleep. But if the right pair of feet put on a pair of boots and jingle a boat key, any one of those dogs will spring to life. Salty dogs are as much a part of Maine boating life as
Morris Yachts: The goal is to hit the “sweet spot”
At one point when Morris Yacht founder Tom Morris was being interviewed about the company, he said, “We’re in a tricky spot around here, but we’re doing okay.” But he wasn’t talking about the company. At the time, he was negotiating a sailboat through a problematic patch of water near Cape Canaveral, Florida. Actually, the
Resource at Risk: Can Downeast Maine save its dark skies?
Seventy-seven-year old David Westphal of Somesville remembers the first time as a child when he saw a sky milky with stars. “It was just awe and wonder,” he recalled. Growing up in rural Minnesota, Westphal didn’t know dark skies were rare; he only realized their value years later after traveling. Such experience helps him appreciate
Development’s Real Cost: Ellsworth’s effluent concerns towns downstream
Surry resident Phyllis Gibson worries about a wastewater treatment plant in a city where she doesn’t even live. Her home, situated on Union River Bay, sits downstream of an aging Ellsworth wastewater facility that can’t always handle the city’s inflow. A heavy rain can engage an illegal bypass in the system that will dump untreated
My 20 Coastal Homes
In our first two years of marriage, my wife and I lived in twenty different homes in half a dozen towns from Rockport to Steuben. In that same span, we moved more than fifty times. We were housesitters, hired by international businessmen, insatiable travelers, and stir-crazy millionaires to look after pets and bring in the
Imperiled fish could help end jurisdictional feud
Here’s a trick to try if the ice gets thick enough: Go to Jordan Pond in Acadia National Park on Mount Desert Island and stand next to the water. You’re on National Park land. Now, step onto the ice. Whose land are you on now? The answer depends on whom you talk to, and the
Online Exclusive: Four great gifts that give back
It’s holiday time again, and with it comes the pressure to give everyone a meaningful gift. As the shopping days dwindle, we wind up rushing out to mobbed stores in a desperate search for the perfect gift. This year, why not give a gift that’s sure to be a good thing for all involved? Try
Online Exclusive: Windstorm makes MDI an island once more
October went out like a lion along Maine’s midcoast region. A three-day storm with hurricane-force winds downed trees and disrupted power for many Hancock County residents right before Halloween. And at one point, the storm gave residents on causeway-connected Mount Desert Island just a taste of true island life. Mount Desert Island is connected to
The Power and Promise of Humane Education
New Society Publishers, 2004 Paperback, 172 pages, $15.95 A Book for a Better World Through the International Institute for Humane Education in Surry, Maine, Zoe Weil has helped train and certify hundreds of educators to teach humane education; humane education is a curriculum that helps students critically examine ecology and social justice issues and take