Coastal Conversations 2/27/15

Producer/Host: Natalie Springuel
Studio Engineer: Amy Browne

Issue: Maine coastal and ocean issues

Program Topic: Green Crabs: Invasion, Impact and Opportunities

Key Discussion Points:
a) Green crab invasion, how they got here and when
b) What impact are green crabs having on shellfish and other species?
c) What can municipalities and others do about the explosion of green crabs?

Guests:
Brian Beal: University of Maine at Machias and Downeast Institute for Applied Marine Research and Education, Beals, ME
Bailey Bowden: Penobscot Shellfish Conservation Committee
Hannah Annis: Area Biologist, Maine Department of Marine Resources

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RadioActive 2/26/15

Producer/Host: Meredith DeFrancesco

Issue: Environmental and Social Justice

Program Topic: The legislature’s public hearing on a bill that would open Maine to metallic mining

Key Discussion Points:

a) Today we hear some of the public testimony and reactions to the legislature’s hearing yesterday on LD 146, a bill that would open Maine to metallic mining. Testimony was almost entirely in opposition to the bill.

b) LD 146 contains Department of Environmental Protection(DEP) rules that were rejected by the 125th Legislature.Opponents say the rules are not protective ground and surface water or tax payers, who could end up paying for extensive cleanup or disaster costs. The metallic mining industry’s historic and current operations around the world are synonymous with water pollution that lasts for decades. The last mining site in Maine, the Callhan mine in Brooksville, continues to pollute 40 years after closure, with tax payers footing the bill.

c) Another point of contention with this bill is the legality of the process in re-introducing the DEP rules. The Maine Attorney General’s office confirms that under Maine’s Administrative Procedure Act (MAPA) these rules should go before a DEP public hearing prior to going before the legislature. The AG office has said the legislature can only preempt the act with a vote by the full legislature.

Guests:
Alice Bolstridge, Presque Isle
Shelley Mountain, Portage Lake
Rep. Janice Cooper (D- Yarmouth), former member of Joint Committee on Natural Resources and Environment
Browne Carson, former director of Natural Resources Council of Maine
Current members of Joint Committee on Natural Resources and Environment: Chair, Sen.Tom Saviello (R-Franklin), Rep. Bob Duechene (D-Hudson), Rep. Denise Harlow (D-Portland), Rep John Martin (D-Eagle Lake)
Anthony Hourihan, Aroostook Resources, JD Irving subsidiary
Jim Mitchell, lobbyist for Aroostook Resources, JD Irving subsidiary
Nick Bennett, staff scientist, Natural Resources Council of Maine

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