Maine Environment: Frontline Voices

Heading into 2025, many of us were inspired by the passage of the Maine Trails Bond in the November 2024 election, which united people and groups that haven't always seen eye-to-eye but were united by their shared love of Maine's outdoors. Gabe Perkins, the Executive Director of Inland Woods & Trails, joins the podcast to discuss the Trails Bond and highlight the importance of trails of all types to Maine people and our communities.

The last few years, our work at the State House in Augusta has delivered enormous progress for Maine's environment. So, how is NRCM gearing up to continue this momentum and what are the priorities we've set for this year's short legislative session? From curbing the use of polluting gas to encouraging reuse, investing in our trails, and tribal sovereignty for the Wabanaki people, NRCM's Advocacy Director Pete Didisheim joins the podcast to discuss the issues and bills we'll be tracking, and how we hope to work together with you – people who love the nature of Maine – to achieve great things for our woods, waters, wildlife, and communities.

It's the holiday season, which means a lot of gifts, a lot of food, and….a lot of waste. Mainers by nature are frugal and don't like waste. It's part of who we are. But when we go to the store or buy online we're faced with a deluge of plastic and other wasteful packaging. And it drives most of us crazy. What can we do about it? We speak with Laura Marston, the owner of the Maine-based, plastic-free, zero-waste business Go Go Refill and Vanessa Berry, NRCM's Sustainable Maine outreach coordinator to talk about tips and ideas for reducing waste at home. For more waste reduction resources, including a map of zero-waste retailers visit nrcm.org.

The U.S. government recently released the Fifth National Climate Assessment, the nation's preeminent policy-neutral report highlighting the latest science about climate change impacts, risks, and responses. We speak with David Reidmiller, the director of the Climate Center at the Gulf of Maine Research Institute (GMRI) who co-authored the Northeast chapter about how climate change is affecting Maine communities and what gives him hope for the future. GMRI is an independent, non-partisan marine nonprofit that supports the Gulf of Maine ecosystem and the communities that depend on it.

The Land for Maine's Future program is Maine's most successful and popular land conservation program, helping to support hundreds of conservation projects that have exceptional natural or recreational value or support Maine's heritage industries of farming, fishing, and forestry. In 2021, the Legislature appropriated $40 million in state funding for LMF, which is being used to support many new projects. In this episode of Frontline Voices, we speak with Steve Walker, the new director of Land for Maine's Future program, to learn more about the types of projects that have been supported, the benefits they deliver to Maine people and communities, and what the future holds for this extraordinarily popular program.

Zero-emission cars and trucks are becoming increasingly popular but many prospective buyers are finding that supply can't keep up with demand. Stronger standards for clean cars and trucks would give consumers in Maine more opportunities to buy electric vehicles and slash toxic tailpipe pollution that is harming human health and making climate change worse. In this episode, we speak with Scott Vlaun of the Center for an Ecology-Based Economy about his organization's experience working to encourage and support zero-emission vehicles in rural Maine, as well as their work to advance a just clean energy transition.

This year's legislative session was another strong demonstration of how Maine's strong conservation ethic continues to define our way of life, drive economic growth, and influence new laws passed at the State House in Augusta. Thousands of Mainers spoke up and took action to protect our environment, strengthen the resiliency of local communities, and accelerate a more equitable clean energy future. NRCM's Advocacy Director Pete Didisheim details how legislators listened to these voices by passing a wide range of new laws that recognize Maine's environment and economy are inextricably linked.

The on-the-ground experience of local redemption center owners like Shandra Rubchinuk helped get the bill to modernize Maine's Bottle Bill across the finish line during this year's legislative session. Shandra, who is co-owner of Jansel Bottle Redemption in Winthrop, joins the podcast to speak about the challenges of operating redemption centers, the important role these small businesses play in making the Bottle Bill so successful, and how the two bills supported by lawmakers this year will help make things more efficient to keep redemption centers open.

In 2016, Ray and Danielle Ruby set a goal to visit every State Park and campground with their family…and they did it! Along the way they chronicled their travels with unvarnished reviews on their popular blog “Rubys on the Road.” Ray joins the podcast to talk about what makes Maine's State Parks so special and get some insider tips from his family's years of experience. NRCM is proud to partner with Mainers like the Rubys to build support for our State Parks and Public Reserved Lands because of the important role they play in our economy and way of life.

The conservation movement and outdoor recreation have long been centered on a white, able-bodied dominant view, but here in Maine and throughout the country there's a movement to interrupt this pattern and instigate change. In this episode we speak with Bri Dostie, one of those Mainers pushing to create more welcoming, joyful spaces in the outdoor community for a greater diversity of people. Bri founded the Confluence Collective, a group that is challenging the overwhelmingly homogenous white male fly fishing community by removing barriers and supporting individual growth through a variety of events and activities.

Solar energy in Maine has grown seven-fold in the last few years. These projects are bringing enormous benefits to Mainers, including helping cash-strapped businesses and towns save money on electricity bills. We know more solar is needed to meet our climate goals, and it's necessary to help buffer against the price spikes we're experiencing from dirty oil and gas. Climate & Clean Energy Senior Advocate Rebecca Schultz joins the podcast to tell us what else we need to know.

The Bottle Bill is a big part of Maine's culture and environmental ethic. It's also our most effective recycling and litter prevention program. And hundreds of Mainers have built their lives and small businesses around bottle redemption. But in the 45 years since it began a lot has changed. NRCM's Sarah Nichols joins the podcast to talk about improvements that are needed to strengthen the Bottle Bill and make it more efficient.

In celebration of National Poetry Month we rebroadcast a powerful poetry reading and discussion that former host Carly Peruccio had with Maine-based poet Richard Blanco for the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. In March of this year, Blanco was awarded with the National Humanities Medal by President Biden at the White House. We hope by rebroadcasting our conversation with Blanco we have given our listeners space to reflect and rest among the very busy legislative session and lives we all lead.

Trails are part of what define the Maine experience. Although Maine currently has wonderful trails for hiking, biking, skiing, snowmobiling, commuting, and other uses, many of our trails are in serious need of repair and maintenance. The Maine Trails Bond would be the State-funded grant program dedicated specifically to supporting trail development and maintenance. Outdoor accessibility specialist Enock Glidden and NRCM Advocacy Director Pete Didisheim speak about the importance of trails to Maine and the remarkable coalition of more than 260 businesses, towns, and groups that coalesced to support the proposal for a Maine Trails Bond.

The snow is melting, roads are getting muddier, and amphibians are on the move! We speak with University of Maine graduate student and 2022 Brookie Award winner Greg LeClair about amphibians in Maine, and in particular the annual spring migration they take to get to breeding habitat. Greg founded Maine Big Night, a community science project to collect data and research on road-crossing amphibians across Maine, that has engaged more than 400 volunteers across 300 survey sites.

For the first time in two decades, the chiefs of the tribes in Maine appeared before a special joint session of the Legislature on March 16, 2023, for the Wabanaki Nations' State of the Tribes address. In this episode, we give listeners an opportunity to hear the full remarks of the five chiefs during this historic moment. One of NRCM's top priorities is to stand alongside the Wabanaki people as they work toward the State of Maine recognizing the inherent sovereignty of Wabanaki people in their homelands.

More than 100,000 heat pumps have been installed by Mainers and every day more are installed. Without a doubt, heat pumps are a runaway success story for Maine, making our state an incredible example for the rest of the nation. We speak with Andy Meyer, Senior Program Manager at Efficiency Maine, about this exciting transition in how we heat and cool our homes, and why Maine's love of heat pumps is attracting national attention. Andy also shared tips on how to optimize performance of your heat pumps.

Cornelia “Fly Rod” Crosby might be Maine's most famous Mainer you've never heard of, but a new statue unveiled in Augusta this week aims to educate more people about her legacy. Fly Rod was a skilled fly fisher and big promoter of Maine in the 1800s who became the state's first Registered Maine Guide. Maine Master Guide Roger Lambert and Brent West, Executive Director of the High Peaks Alliance, discuss Fly Rod's enormous legacy and why it remains so relevant today.

Our new CEO Rebeccah Sanders has been on the job a little over a week and has hit the ground running, drawing on her two decades of executive nonprofit management experience in community-driven conservation work and her long-time love of Maine's great outdoors. What has Rebeccah learned so far, and what is she looking forward to in the future for NRCM and Maine's environment? Tune in to hear it all in her own words.

Bonus episode! On January 24, 2023, the Natural Resources Council of Maine joined with Senator Mark Lawrence, labor leaders, and conservation partners to announce a bill to boost floating offshore wind in the Gulf of Maine.

The State House in Augusta is once again bustling with activity, and NRCM's experts have been hard at work identifying our top priorities for the 2023 legislative session that will protect Maine's climate, water, wildlife, and outdoors. Advocacy Director Pete Didisheim joins the podcast to highlight some of the top environmental issues and bills we'll be tracking in the upcoming legislative session, and offers tips on how to keep up-to-date.

Scientist, educator, and author John Waldman discusses how we can restore Maine's rivers and the great fish migrations to which they were once home. Waldman's talk was originally delivered at an online webinar NRCM hosted in December as part of our ongoing effort to support a free-flowing Kennebec River and bring back millions of sea-run fish, including endangered Atlantic salmon. To view the webinar, including Waldman's slides, visit: https://youtu.be/2NSU2oHLQMQ

It has been an exciting year marked by big accomplishments for Maine's environment at the State House and beyond. Advocacy Director Pete Didisheim joins the podcast to highlight 10 areas of progress from 2022 that inspired and energized us. We hope our listeners enjoy these good news stories and it leaves you rejuvenated heading into the new year as we continue our collective work to protect what we love.

NRCM Rising guest host Kate Shambaugh interviews 2020 Brookie Award winner Gabby Hillyer about her experience as part of the University of Maine delegation to the COP27 U.N. Climate Change Conference in Egypt that was help in mid-November 2022.

On Tuesday November 8th, Maine voters delivered another bipartisan, pro-environment majority to the State House. What do those election results mean for our collective work to protect the nature of Maine? NRCM's Interim CEO and Advocacy Director Pete Didisheim joins the podcast to provide our initial analysis of what the results of this year's state and federal election means for Maine's environment. For a more in-depth review of the election's impact on our environment, join Pete for a Zoom webinar on November 15th by RSVP'ing at nrcm.org.

Every year, NRCM honors environmental leaders in Maine with our Conservation Leadership Awards. The speeches recipients give at our annual event are full of heart, passion, and commitment. In this episode, you'll hear the inspirational stories of this year's five CLA recipients: Project Puffin's Dr. Steve Kress, Portland & So. Portland sustainability leads Troy Moon and Julie Rosenbach, aquafarm activists Frenchman Bay United, rockweed advocate Dr. Robin Hadlock Seeley, and Juniper Hill "close the loophole" coalition Don't Waste ME.

Maine's spectacular outdoors are central to our way of life, and nowhere is that more evident than in the state's booming outdoor recreation industry. Outdoor recreation contributes $3 billion to Maine's economy, making up 3.3%—more than double the national average in 2020. In this episode, Colin speaks with Jenny Kordick, the Executive Director of Maine Outdoor Brands, about what makes Maine's outdoor industry unique, and what we learned from the inaugural Maine Outdoor Economy Summit held in mid-October.

On September 29th, hundreds of Mainers gathered on the banks of the Androscoggin River in Lewiston to honor some of Maine's 100 Clean Water Champions and celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Clean Water Act. We spoke with a few of the Champions for this podcast episode and asked them to share their unique connection to clean water in Maine. Together, these interviews provide a snapshot into the passion and dedication of everyday Mainers to protect the clean water that makes our state so special.

In this episode, Colin speaks with two Maine residents who live in completely different parts of the state but share a common threat facing the clean water where they live. Robin Hadlock Seeley worked to share information with residents in Pembroke to pass an ordinance banning Wolfden's mining activities, and MaryAlice Mowry has been shining a light on Wolfden's sketchy activities in the Patten area near Pickett Mountain where Wolfden has proposed a mining operation.

More Mainers than ever are driving electric vehicles, and more models are coming to market every year. In this episode, we speak with NRCM Climate & Clean Energy Outreach Coordinator Josh Caldwell to discuss what we learned from NRCM's 2022 survey of every electric vehicle owner in Maine. This was our third and most popular survey—with a record-breaking 1,230 responses from all 16 counties!

This month, we'll be joining many others in celebrating the sixth anniversary of the creation of the Katahdin Woods & Waters National Monument. In this episode, we speak with Sam Deeran, Acting Executive Director of the Friends of Katahdin Woods & Waters, about the enormous success of the Monument, what's changed in those six years, and what visitors can expect in the coming years.

Hope was renewed again in Washington D.C., when Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senator Joe Manchin announced a new deal to invest billions of dollars in clean energy and climate action. In this episode, we speak with experts at the Environmental Defense Fund and National Wildlife Federation to find out how the Inflation Reduction Act would lower energy costs for Mainers and help us meet the goals laid out in Maine's Climate Action Plan.

In this episode, NRCM Rising Leadership Team member Kate Shambaugh speaks with Isabel Rogers, Hub Organizer for Sunrise Movement Franklin County, which just celebrated its first anniversary. It is part of a national youth-led nonprofit made up of young activists working on environmental and social justice issues such as climate change. Learn more about NRCM's new Franklin County coordinator Marc Edwards and his work, as well as which state recently became the fourth to pass an EPR for Packaging Law. Maine was the first state to pass such a law in 2021.

Maine leaders expressed outrage at a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision limiting the ability of the federal government to reduce carbon pollution. NRCM Climate & Clean Energy Director Jack Shapiro discusses what it means for Maine's environment and also details an interesting new decision by the Public Utilities Commission that provides a snapshot into what the future of our electric grid could look like and how it'll deliver benefits to Maine people.

Though NRCM's work in the State House is done for the year, our role as watchdog for Maine's environment never lets up. Advocacy Director Pete Didisheim speaks about some of the topics we'll be following this summer. The unifying theme that emerges from the discussion is that many out-of-state corporations are trying to take advantage of Maine people and our environment to turn a profit.

State agencies that were reviewing the American Aquafarms proposal to build a massive industrial salmon farm in Frenchman Bay recently announced they were terminating the project's permit applications. But the company responded by saying they weren't going away despite overwhelming opposition from local communities. In this episode, we speak with NRCM Staff Scientist Nick Bennett about the fundamental problems with Atlantic salmon net-pen aquaculture and why the American Aquafarms proposal would devastate the clean ocean waters of Frenchman Bay.

Youth clean water activist and 2022 Brookie Award winner Noela Altvater speaks about her advocacy to ensure clean drinking water for the Passamaquoddy Tribe at Sipayik. Learn more about this year's six Brookies at brookieawards.org. Also, Advocacy Director Pete Didisheim reports back from a staff field trip to the Benton Falls fish lift and talks about the amazing story of alewives returning to China Lake for the first time in more than two centuries.

A proposed land use plan for the Moosehead Lake region has been released that balances economic development with conservation. Forests & Wildlife Director Melanie Sturm discusses what the proposal means for the future of the Moosehead Lake area and how NRCM is working to protect the unique character of this special region. Advocacy Director Pete Didisheim also gives his closing thoughts on the 130th legislative session and what's next for NRCM's advocacy priorities.

The second session of the 130th Legislature was marked by significant progress on a broad range of environmental issues, from clean water to climate action. Advocacy Director Pete Didisheim details the new laws that will benefit Maine's environment and communities for years to come and highlights how several bipartisan votes for priority bills reflect the strong conservation ethic of Maine people.

Bangor High School students Kosis Ifeji and Ogechi Obi speak with NRCM Rising guest host Kate Shambaugh about their journey as climate activists and discuss their efforts to pass LD 1902, a bill to encourage climate change education in Maine public schools. As a climate action leader, Maine has identified the need for climate education – but teachers need support. The bill would support equitable access to climate change education by funding professional development for Maine teachers through community partnerships.

With about one month left in Maine's legislative session, NRCM's Advocacy Director Pete Didisheim joins the podcast to provide a status report on how NRCM's environmental priority bills are doing. Several bills have received positive outcomes at committees and will soon be voted on by the House and Senate, while details about a few others — including utility accountability, tribal sovereignty, and PFAS pollution — are still being worked out.

The latest international climate report included bleak warnings about the impacts of climate change accelerating faster than anticipated. But scientists also left us with a sliver of hope, making clear that if the world acts quickly on climate, we have a chance at avoiding some of the worst impacts. Climate & Clean Energy Director Jack Shapiro joins the podcast to bring this international news down to a local level here in Maine by talking about the climate connection to utility accountability and housing bills being considered by the Legislature.

Penobscot Nation Tribal Ambassador Maulian Dana joins the podcast to discuss the bill to restore self-determination and self-governance to the Wabanaki tribes. Based on consensus recommendations from a bipartisan task force convened by the Maine Legislature, the legislation addresses long-standing issues with a land claims act passed in 1980 that governs the relationship between the state and the tribes in Maine. To learn more and take action visit wabanakialliance.com.

In this episode, we speak with UMaine Farmington forest ecologist and Professor of Biology Dr. Drew Barton about Maine's 19 ecological reserves and the value these 97,000 acres of public lands provide to Maine people. NRCM Forests & Wildlife Director Melanie Sturm speaks about the challenges facing Maine's woods and waters, and why now is the time to expand the state's ecological reserve system to mitigate climate change and protect more habitats for Maine's unique plants and animals. Download our special report at: https://www.nrcm.org/our-maine/publications/maines-ecological-reserves-publication

In this episode, we kick off a new series of interviews with Maine's young environmental leaders to elevate their voices and share their stories. Our special co-host NRCM Rising Leadership Team member Kate Shambaugh speaks with 2020 Brookie Award Winner Jordan Kendall Parks about connecting people to nature through art and what winning a Brookie Award has meant to her. Learn more about the Brookie Awards at brookieawards.org and visit https://jordankendallparks.com to view Jordan's work.

Maine lawmakers have convened for the second session of the 130th Legislature and will consider dozens of bills that could impact Maine's healthy air, clean water, and rich natural resources. In this episode, Advocacy Director Pete Didisheim details NRCM's top environmental priorities for 2022 and why they matter for our collective work to protect the nature of Maine. Pete provides his thoughts about the opening session of the Maine Legislature and reflections about the January 6, 2021, failed insurrection of the U.S. Capitol Building.

Two new reports showed that the U.S. ranks as the leading contributor of plastic waste and detailed how plastic production is worsening the climate crisis. We check in with NRCM Sustainable Maine Director Sarah Nichols to get her reaction to these reports and provide updates on the steps Maine is taking to tackle the plastic pollution crisis and reduce waste.

On November 2, CMP suffered a stunning setback for its controversial corridor project and now the project's future is in doubt. In this episode, NRCM's Advocacy Director Pete Didisheim dissects what's happened since the overwhelming vote by Maine people to terminate the CMP corridor. November is Native American Heritage Month, and NRCM encourages listeners to learn more about Maine's native Tribes and the campaign for Tribal sovereignty by visiting the Wabanaki Alliance website at wabanakialliance.com.

Climate & Clean Energy Director Jack Shapiro joins the podcast to talk about how cleaner trucks and buses will benefit Maine, what the new infrastructure bill passed by Congress means for Maine communities, and what lessons can be learned from the decisive vote by an overwhelming majority of Maine people to ban the CMP corridor.

CMP and Hydro-Quebec have spent more than $70 million on a desperate political campaign full of scare tactics and misinformation. As Election Day nears, and just days before Halloween, Colin and Pete tick down the top 10 spooky scare tactics and dirty tricks used by CMP. Voters should treat Question 1 as a referendum on CMP because of these tactics. NRCM urges Mainers to send CMP a message by voting Yes on 1 to reject the CMP corridor.

As Election Day inches closer and closer, Colin and Pete discuss one of the top issues on the ballot: Question 1, the citizen's initiative to stop the CMP corridor. We explore some of the key issues voters should keep in mind and why voting YES on Question 1 is the right approach for stopping the CMP corridor. Pete also highlights a major victory for Maine's environment that came when a company withdrew its application for a polluting mine in the shadow of Katahdin.