Maine Climate News
Climate Justice Concerns Continue with the Proposed Juniper Ridge Landfill Expansion.
Maine is still grappling with what to do with PFAS contaminated sewage sludge (“biosolids”) after banning the practice of spreading biosolids on farmland. Now, around 90% of Maine’s biosolids are shipped to Juniper Ridge Landfill. However, harmful PFAS chemicals can still move through landfill leachate and into surrounding waterways, including the Penobscot River.
Penobscot Nation’s Department of Natural Resources and other environmental advocates are opposing a proposed landfill expansion, arguing that the pollution threatens the Penobscot River and disproportionately affects the Penobscot Nation.
Source: The Maine Monitor
Maine’s Data Center Advisory Council Holds First Meeting.
A 17-member Maine Data Center Advisory Council held its first meeting on June 3 to discuss possible data center restrictions. Governor Mills established the council after vetoing a bill that would have paused new data center development in Maine for 18 months.
Climate justice advocates have raised concerns about data centers’ high energy use, water consumption, and wastewater discharge, warning that rapid development could strain resources and disproportionately impact nearby communities.
The council is expected to submit its final report and recommendations to the governor and the Maine Legislature by Jan. 29, 2027.
Source: Maine Department of Energy Resources
Toxic Rat Poison Pulled from Shelves in Maine.
The Maine Board of Pesticide Control voted to prohibit the sale and use of Second-Generation Anticoagulant Rodenticides (SGARs). SGARs are extremely potent and can kill rodents with a single dose.
SGARs can harm wildlife, pets, and entire ecosystems when predators and scavengers consume poisoned rodents. Birds of prey, foxes, bobcats, and other animals can be unintentionally exposed, allowing toxic effects to move up the food chain.
The new restrictions will help protect Maine wildlife and pets by limiting the sale and shipment of these products into Maine.
Source: Maine Public
Wild Blueberry Farms Struggle In a Changing Climate.
Maine produces nearly all of the wild blueberries sold in the US. Wild blueberry farms generate millions of dollars in economic activity in Maine. But those blueberry farms are being hit hard by increasingly extreme weather linked to climate change. After severe drought conditions in 2025, some growers saw devastating crop losses as heat and lack of rain stressed plants and caused berries to shrivel before ripening.
Climate change is making growing seasons less predictable. Drought, heat stress, and extreme weather threaten future harvests. Scientists are now working with growers to find ways to adapt and protect the crop.
Source: Inside Climate News
