วีดีโอ

We can't speak for UMaine (this is NRCM's account), but climate change is the greatest threat facing the marine species in the Gulf of Maine. Biologists are confident that floating offshore wind can successfully coexist with wildlife, and responsibly developed offshore wind is one of the best things we can do to reduce our reliance on the fossil fuels that are making climate impacts worse. Maine's offshore wind law also requires developers to abide by strict protections for wildlife and support ongoing research.

Your reply seems a bit short-sighted to me. Removing the dam wasn't done, ultimately, to benefit humans, but rather to restore the ancestral flow and ecosystem of the river and the hundreds of life forms, both flora and fauna, that had been negatively affected by the dam. Folks in the video speak to the fact that fishing both above and below the dam was "terrible" while the dam was in place, but has recovered dramatically since the dam was removed. Humans can now also enjoy being on the river for whatever reason, all the way to it's outflow into the sea, something that couldn't be done when the dam was is place. As for hauling in "fish by the truckloads" out of the river, such actions are a big part of the destruction of the biodiversity of our natural resources. We are here to be protective and careful stewards of this paradise we've found ourselves living in, not to rape it and render it void of life and vitality, IMO. We all need to ensure that we leave as small a footprint as we can, so that the generations that come after us can enjoy this paradise as much as we do.

​@@loragunning5394 Watched the video again, yup, nothing but happy talk. Smiles everyone! Ohh....look....birds.....did you see the fish jump? The claim is the dam was harming and causing degradation of the river to the point fish and animals were barely surviving but yet it does not give any hard facts as to main claim. That being, a huge increases of fish and biodiversity with its removal. Without hard information about promises made 25 years earlier why would most get behind such projects? Hauling truck loads of fish from the river would be a sure sign that removing the dam and efforts were worthwhile and the "recovery" was successful. For at the "25 year" mark video it doesn't show much, just happy talk.

​@@sw8741 The dam removals impact on fish populations has been well studied: "Edwards Dam was removed in 1999, and Fort Halifax Dam was removed in 2008. Counts of river herring (Alewife Alosa pseudoharengus and Blueback Herring A. aestivalis), American Shad A. sapidissima, and Striped Bass Morone saxatilis at upstream dams confirmed that these species quickly recolonized the 27-km, free-flowing segment of the Kennebec River that became accessible after Edwards Dam was removed. Average counts of river herring increased by 228% after the removal of Edwards Dam and by 1,425% after the removal of Fort Halifax Dam." So nearly a 1500% increase in stock of herring in the ~17 mile section above the removed dam. Quoted from "Recovery of Diadromous Fishes: A Kennebec River Case Study" by Gail Wippelhauser. There has been a huge increase in fish and biodiversity, you can easily see it yourself if you visit the river during spawning season and compare the lower section of the river that is free of dams to the sections above the remaining dams. Similarly positive impacts on fish numbers have been recorded at every dam removal I know of in Maine. Additionally, check out this study for more details on the restored alewife fishery impact socially and economically: "Social benefits of restoring historical ecosystems and fisheries: alewives in Maine" by Loren McClenachan et al

​@@sw8741 I agree the video could have included some more specifics/details about the recovery, but the post-dam removal recovery is well supported by hard data. Approximately 1500% increase in migratory fish numbers in the ~17 mile section above the removal. If you search on google scholar using keywords like "Kennebec River Migratory Fish Dam Removal" you will find plenty of studies and hard data that supports the improvements to the river ecology. Especially check out the paper "Social benefits of restoring historical ecosystems and fisheries: alewives in Maine" by Loren McClenachan, Samantha Lovell, Caroline Keaveney, published in Ecology and Society. Its open access, freely available online, covers the social/economic impact of these dam removals.

Every year the striped bass run up the Kennebec at the end of May, start of June. They can now make it all the way to Waterville since the removal of the Edwards dam in Augusta. Now they make it as far as the Lockwood dam near Bridge Street, Waterville Maine.

Disagree. Seeing clean unlimited free energy in action is actually inspiring and delightful.

You can learn more about her experience here: www.nrcm.org/about-nrcm/ceo/

“No heat” would mean absolute zero, which is impossible.

Thank you, Trink. We're lucky to count you as a member!