Page 36 - Union River News Today : Breaking News, Live Updates & Top Stories | Vimarsana

Dam relicensing remains in limbo ELLSWORTH — As Black Bear Hydro, the energy company in charge of the Ellsworth and Graham Lake dams, awaits the appeals process for its federal licensing renewal, the question arises: what happens if a new license is never issued? “If the [Federal Energy Regulatory Commission] makes a determination to not issue a new license, this would initiate the decommissioning process,” Black Bear Senior Communications Director Andy Davis told The American.  Black Bear Hydro was denied its water quality certification by the Maine Department of Environmental Protect...

Local hospitality sector optimistic about 2021 season ELLSWORTH — That the local tourism and hospitality industry took a major hit under the COVID-19 pandemic is no surprise. Maine’s bicentennial celebrations? Canceled. Waterfront concerts? Never happened. Hotel and inn reservations? Plenty were available starting June 1— for those willing to quarantine for 14 days. Still, people came to Maine, if a few months later than usual. They stocked up on groceries and helped keep restaurants alive through the pivots and shifts that changing pandemic rules and restrictions forced them into just ...

Heart of Ellsworth looks back at pandemic year ELLSWORTH  — A recap of Heart of Ellsworth’s 2020 showed how the community nonprofit survived the pandemic year while keeping its mission alive to “provide a vibrant community for all” with business, culture, historic, educational and environmental activities, mainly centered in the downtown area. At its Jan. 26 annual meeting, held online, over 40 people tuned in. “Heart of Ellsworth had one of the most successful years,” board President Phyllis Young began, as committee members followed with their reports. Nearly all of Heart of El...

Commentary: Removing 4 Brookfield Renewable dams would revive lower Kennebec, at-risk species The fate of Atlantic salmon in the U.S. depends on restoring them in the Kennebec. Razing these dams would give the species its best chance at survival. By Jeff Reardon and John BurrowsSpecial to the Press Herald Share Colin Woodard’s Jan. 3 article on Brookfield Renewable’s four Kennebec River dams between Waterville and Skowhegan brings much-needed attention to stalled efforts to restore endangered Atlantic salmon and other sea-run fish to Maine’s second largest watershed. A Fairfield man c...

Playing by the rules on the Union River By Dwayne Shaw and Brett Ciccotelli Recently, Brookfield Renewables, the owner of the Ellsworth and Graham Lake dams, issued a press statement that has angered locals and further muddied the waters regarding their intentions to comply with state and federal water quality and fisheries regulations. What is clear is that Brookfield has decided its profits are at risk because its antiquated dams and highly problematic water management systems cannot be lawfully permitted under modern licensing requirements. Hydroelectric dams are licensed only every 40 yea...