NRCM Blog

Scooter Update: 13 Days and 139 miles!

It has been 13 days and 139 miles since my scooter purchase.  You didn’t just read the miles wrong.  That is right… 139 miles for just under 2 weeks of riding around town!  I have put a total of $5.80 in gas into this scooter.  I have reduced the use of my SUV significantly. Usually in 2 weeks' time I would have put about $80 in gas into my SUV!!!  If that isn’t a huge savings, I don’t know what is. 

My husband and I both use the scooter for running the majority of our errands.  I find I have plenty of room in the seat and the duffle bag I added to the back rack to carry around some last minute groceries and other items. 

In the past two weeks I have used the scooter to ride to and from work, quick personal and work errands, and a quick visit to my parents' house in South Gardiner to get a mechanic lesson and find out what is what on this scooter.  The break adjustments and idle adjustments are very easy. If I can do it, anyone can!  Also Pushards in Chelsea, Maine works on and sells scooters and scooter accessories. If they don’t have the item in the store they will quickly order for you and call you when it is in!  I just ordered a couple of new mirrors for $12!  I also got my helmet there.  Minor repairs are very easy and you can probably do them yourself. I watched a couple videos that I found on Google that helped me fine tune my scooter a bit.

Back to Plum Creek: Deliberations

I’m at the St. Paul Center at the moment listening to the LURC staff brief the seven Commissioners on their recommendations.  You can find the LURC staff recommendations and NRCM’s brief summary of them on our website here.  As you’ll read, we still have concerns about development on Lily Bay and about the oversize of development for the area.

Today is the second and final day of deliberations.  After these sessions Plum Creek will need to decide what changes they are going to make.  So far the Commissioners seem to have sent a clear message that all of the staff’s recommended changes are necessary.

The room started off fairly full yesterday morning with lots of folks sporting stickers that said “Too Much Development.”  Plum Creek seems to have sent only about four or five of their hoard of lawyers.  The Plum Creek private security detail has returned as well.  The lawyers are sitting dutifully in the front row along with other assorted Plum Creek employees, and security is floating about at the doors.  I can’t help but wonder how much Plum Creek is spending per hour on that row of lawyers and other PC staff in the room.

LURC staff has been walking the Commission through their recommendations almost page by page.  Lily Bay was discussed yesterday morning.  The staff has recommended scaling back the total number of acres to be zoned for development but has not changed the total number of “units” of development. You can find a map here.  Some 404 “units” would be allowed at Lily Bay. LURC staff said that outside of this process it would be likely that they would only allow about 100 “units” in this location.  However, since Plum Creek is going through the concept planning process they are allowed to waive some of the Commission’s rule in exchange for conservation.

Several Commissioners talked about their concerns with development at Lily Bay.  There seemed to be a unanimous agreement of the Commissioners with the staff recommendation to reduce the size of the development zone on Lily Bay.  Several mentioned the potential impact to the federally threatened Canada lynx as a major issue.  A few of the Commissioners went on to express concern with the level of development that can still happen there. Unfortunately, there wasn’t a substantive discussion of removing all development from Lily Bay.

We believe that Lily Bay is being looked at as a sacrifice zone in exchange for the easements. Many of the Commissioners have commented that they have concerns with the scale of development in certain places, but that they are willing to look past that because of the easements. As written about by many who wrote letters to the Commissioner about their concern about Plum Creek’s proposal, Lily Bay is treasured by Mainers as an affordable getaway, where they can enjoy quiet recreation, as they have for generations. We hope the Commissioners will review those letters as they consider their decision.

Yesterday ended with the Commission’s discussing the staff’s proposed changes to the easements and today has begun with it.  Again the Commissioners seemed to be unanimous that the easements need to be strengthened and that they were necessary for this proposal to move forward.  NRCM and Maine Audubon have been very focused on the easements, noting where the problems are and in what ways they should be improved.  To this point we’ve considered them weak and full of loopholes.  To the LURC staff’s credit, the proposed changes to the easements have gone a long way toward improving them.  But we still don’t feel that they offset the massive scale of this proposal and the loss of Lily Bay. 

At the moment the Commissioners are debating who should be the holders of the easements.  Plum Creek has proposed to have The Nature Conservancy and Forest Society of Maine be the holders.  There is some concern among the Commission that instead the holder should be the State of Maine, likely through the Bureau of Parks and Lands. Because the easements are in part required to offset the recreational and scenic impacts of the development, they want to ensure that the public interest is being adequately protected in perpetuity. 

Diano Circo
NRCM North Woods Policy Advocate and Outreach Coordinator

Taking Toxics Out of Maine's Environment - an interesting national news story and more.

I don’t know if all of you saw the CBS Evening News story about Hannah Pingree that aired earlier this week, but I wanted to share it with you in case you missed it.  You can watch it here:   http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/i_video/main500251.shtml?id=4109474n I am one of those people who get really excited when the national news covers a story from my home state, and even more excited when it is related to someone or something that I know about.  Over the past two years I have gotten to know a lot about Hannah Pingree and her incredible work to eliminate toxic chemicals from use in Maine.  I first got to see her appear in our “You’re In Jeopardy” movie that was used during the campaign to ban Deca (a toxic flame retardant) from use in household products like mattresses and other furniture and electronics.  She then introduced one of our top priority bills this legislative session – LD 2048, “An Act to Protect Children’s Health and the Environment from Toxic Chemicals in Children’s Products.”  This bill passed by a huge margin in both the House and Senate (passing unanimously in the Senate!) and will require manufacturers to disclose information about certain chemicals in their products, and look for ways to replace those toxic chemicals in their products. 

LURC Staff Says Plum Creek Needs Changes; Lily Bay Still at Risk

Today, the Plum Creek verdict is one step closer to being in.  In a mildly surprising move, LURC staff released a list of recommended changes to Plum Creek’s development proposal on Tuesday night.  The 136-page recommendation makes one thing very clear – a lot of changes are necessary.

The LURC staff recommendations also make it clear that we’ve still got work to do.  The staff didn't recommend any changes to the total amount of development.  In fact, the total potential build-out appears to have increased because parts of development zones on Brassua Lake and in Rockwood Village would be reopened for additional development after this proposal expires in 30 years.

The recommendation also still allows the same amount of development on Lily Bay Peninsula.  Under the recommendations, the size of the development zone on Lily Bay would be reduced, but the total amount of development allowed there would remain the same; 404 residential “units”, a golf course, and associated commercial development.  Units can be anything from a room at a resort to a mega-house on the shore.

There is also good news buried in the details of the staff recommendation.  Many of the loopholes in the working forest easements that we’ve been focused on would be closed.  The critical habitat along the remote North Shore of Long Pond, an area we and Maine Audubon have focused on throughout this process, would be spared the house lots Plum Creek proposed.

We’ve put together a quick summary of the LURC staff recommendations.  You can find the entire recommendation here (it’s a large document so it may take some time to download).  Here's a smaller text only version.

This LURC staff recommendation is only a step towards a final decision.  For one, it’s not clear if Plum Creek will be willing to accept any of the proposed changes.  Ultimately it would be up to them to submit amendments to there proposal.  Secondly, the Commissioners are independent and are likely to have a lot to say about how things move forward. 

A more complete picture will come out of the two Commission deliberative sessions that will happen next week on May 27th and 28th.  These sessions will be the first time that the seven Commissioners actually begin talking publicly about their positions.  During the weeks of intervener sessions and public hearings the Commissioners mostly listened and asked clarifying questions. 

Scooter Savings - how I saved money and reduced pollution

With rising gas prices, most of us are wondering how this will fit into our budgets. I drive a few miles to and from work 5 days a week, I run errands on my lunch breaks and sometimes after work as well. My local commute to and from work is not as far as others. However, when filling my SUV GMC Jimmy that averages 16 mpg according to www.fueleconomy.gov I started thinking about how I can cut my global warming pollution and expenses when gas hits $4.00 a gallon or more. 

I considered riding a bike. Then I considered the pros and cons. I would get quite a bit of exercise daily, which would be great! BUT when the weather gets extremely hot, will I actually continue to get on that bike daily or into the gas-guzzling SUV?  Living on a long steep hill as well caused some hesitation. I would be pushing my bike up the hill when I got home. Being in a time crunch or needing to carry a few items home would be difficult as well. I considered walking.  Then I thought about how early I would need to get up to be to work on time. Also, when doing daycare pick up, could I walk home or ride home quickly enough to get the vehicle that holds the car seat?

With all of these things to consider I started re-thinking my options. This led to my recent purchase of my 49.9 cc 2004 gas saving scooter/moped.  I started looking at Uncle Henry’s and Craigslist.com and weighed the options.  If you purchase a 50 cc or under, there is no need to get a motorcycle license according to the Maine state laws http://maine.gov/sos/bmv/registration/scooter.html. Once you register and insure it, you are out and about on the main roads with your new scooter, the exception being that you can not take a 50cc or smaller vehicle on the Interstate. These scooters get roughly 80-100 mpg (the tank holds about a gallon and a half of gas).

I think a scooter is a purchase worth considering. Hopefully we will see more and more scooters on the road.  You do need to remember to take caution while in traffic, follow all motor vehicle laws and speed limits and most of all assume you are invisible to other drivers (as my mom says!). DON’T FORGET TO PURCHASE A HELMET.  Your brain is worth protecting! 

Drive Safely,

Leisa Dennett
Advocacy Assistant

Where in the World is Your NRCM Bag?

I am very excited that more and more people are using canvas bags for their groceries, shopping at local stores, and for their travels (canvas bags are great travel totes).  I am also excited to see folks posing for photos with their NRCM tote bags.  On Earth Day, we launched this new “where in the world is your NRCM bag?” project in which we ask members and supporters to take their NRCM bags with them on vacation to local Maine landmarks or to other exotic locales in order to show us where and how they use their canvas bags.  We are trying to raise awareness about the use of canvas bags rather than paper or plastic bags that fill up landfills, take years to biodegrade, and also cause harm to wildlife.

Here's one of my favorite pictures that has been sent in so far.  It's of Jewell Childs on her way home to Maine from her winter in Florida:

I hope you will join our effort by buying an NRCM bag or use the NRCM bag you already have. Please send us a photo from your bag-toting adventures!  See where other people have been with their bags by visiting our website.

What are some ways that you use your canvas tote?  I always make sure I come home from buying groceries and immediately unpack my canvas bags, put the groceries away, and then fold up my bags and put them right back in my car before I forget.  I am always stopping at stores to buy one or two things, and now I can either use my canvas bags or just tell them that I am all set and don’t need a bag for my few purchases.  I used to have more plastic bags at my house than I knew what to do with – and now I get probably one plastic bag every month or so – and I then take it to be recycled the next time I am at that store.  I know that my using canvas bags isn’t going to change the world all at once, but I feel like everything we can do, big or small, can make a difference.

Here’s a great blog post about canvas totes and the “paper or plastic” debate: www.thestreet.com/s/paper-or-plastic-neither-one-please/newsanalysis/environmental-stock-picks/10412988.html?puc=googlefi&cm_ven=GOOGLEFI&cm_cat=FREE&cm_ite=NA

So, where in the world is YOUR NRCM bag?

Beth Dimond