NRCM Blog

Update on alewives bill

Here is an article from today's Bangor Daily News that explains the latest on the St. Croix alewives bill:

Compromise Would Allow Alewives Up to Grand Falls
Tuesday March 18th, 2008, by Kevin Miller

AUGUSTA - A legislative committee has reached a tentative compromise that would allow alewives in the St. Croix River up to the Grand Falls dam this year.

A majority of members of the Legislature’s Marine Resources Committee have voted once in support of a bill that would reopen the Woodland dam to alewives, also known as river herring, for the first time since 1995. The committee is expected to revisit the vote this Wednesday.

The original version of LD 1957 would have allowed sea-run alewives to swim above both the Woodland and Grand Falls dams in the St. Croix. But that bill, like similar proposals in past years, encountered stiff opposition from registered guides and others who fear the sea-run alewives will destroy the prized smallmouth bass and landlocked salmon fisheries in the area.

Under the amended version, the Department of Marine Resources and the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife would work together to develop a river herring management plan before any alewives would be allowed beyond Grand Falls.

The two departments would consult with the leadership of the Passamaquoddy Tribe when developing the plan. An earlier proposal would have given Passamaquoddy leaders, who have lobbied against upriver passage of alewives, an equal role in development of a management plan.

The presence — or lack thereof — of alewives in the St. Croix has been an inflammatory issue during the past 15 years.

Kid-Safe Products Bill Passes Out of Committee 9-4 yesterday evening!

Hi folks,

We’re very excited about this strong vote out of committee.  But with 25 industry lobbyists working the Senate, the real work begins now. Please contact your Senator in the next couple of weeks and urge them to support this bill.

Thanks for all your help.

-Matt

Here is a press release from the Maine House Majority Office that we received today:

For Immediate Release
March 10, 2008
Contact: Travis Kennedy, Communications Director, 287-1433

Natural Resources Committee Endorses Bill to Track and Prohibit Toxins in Children's Products

Committee combines two similar bills into Pingree proposal - measure now heads to full House

AUGUSTA - A majority of the Legislature's Natural Resources Committee voted Monday in support of a bill to test, track and eliminate dangerous chemicals from products that are exposed to children in Maine.

The bill, proposed by House Majority Leader Hannah Pingree, would require the State to create a regularly-updated list of chemicals that the Maine Department of Environmental Protection identifies as harmful, and require manufacturers to disclose if their products contain those chemicals. It would establish a process for replacing them with safer alternatives, and allow the Department to cooperate with other states, share information and promote safer chemical use.

Pingree, D-North Haven, said that the federal EPA has failed to keep up with identifying and regulating the use of chemicals in household products, and manufacturers are using toxic substances in products that children and adults are exposed to every day. Chemicals like phthalates and bisphenol-A, which have proven negative effects on fetal brain development and behavior, turn up in everything from shampoo to teething rings, and are among thousands of chemicals of concern that are currently unregulated by the federal government.

Her bill would start with a list of already identified chemicals of concern that an authoritative government agency has determined are hazardous to health or the environment based on credible scientific evidence. After a review of the evidence, the Maine Department of Environmental Protection would identify the priority chemicals that come in contact with children.

Update on LD 2179 - energy efficiency standards for new homes and buildings

Last Thursday, February 28th was a busy day in Augusta; the list of bills being heard was almost too long to keep track of! A few of NRCM’s priority bills were all scheduled for hearings at the same time: LD 2179 energy efficient building codes, LD 2048 toxic toys, LD 2126 no coal, and a few others we are keeping our eyes on.

I spent the afternoon in the Business, Research and Economic Development (BRED) Committee room which was hearing the building codes bill, but the Natural Resources Committee room was also buzzing with activity. The hearing on efficient building codes went quite well, with the number of bill supporters far outweighing the two opponents (who said that they support uniform energy codes but felt the Legislature should slow down in addressing this issue.)