State regulators say the Hawk Ridge facility in Unity is a source of PFAS contamination in nearby streams, rivers and fish. The owner says the state’s regulatory environment has made its operation unsustainable.
Penelope Overton
Staff Writer
Penny Overton is excited to be the Portland Press Herald’s first climate reporter. Since joining the paper in 2016, she has written about Maine’s lobster and cannabis industries, covered state politics and spent a fellowship year exploring the impact of climate change on the lobster fishery with the Boston Globe’s Spotlight team. Before moving to Maine, she has covered politics, environment, casino gambling and tribal issues in Florida, Connecticut, and Arizona. Her favorite assignments allow her to introduce readers to unusual people, cultures, or subjects. When off the clock, Penny is usually getting lost in a new book at a local coffeehouse, watching foreign crime shows or planning her family’s next adventure.
Posted inBusiness, Local & State, News
Manufacturers seek product exemptions from Maine PFAS ban
Makers of products like nonstick cookware cite health, safety and functioning of society as reasons they should be able to continue selling products made with forever chemicals.
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Posted inHealth, Local & State, News
Heat danger: Maine’s most vulnerable at risk from rising summer temps
Last summer was Maine’s hottest on record and data show the state is getting hotter.
Posted inLocal & State, News
Maine issues new fish consumption limits for PFAS-tainted waters
Six bodies of water have new fish consumption advisories due to elevated levels of forever chemicals.
Posted inLocal & State, News
Where in Maine are you most likely to get a dangerous tick bite?
For the last 6 years, the answer has been Hancock, Knox, Lincoln and Waldo counties, according to researchers at the University of Maine Cooperative Extension’s tick lab.
Posted inLocal & State, News
Maine’s small vernal pools may get bigger state protections
A bill now awaiting action by Gov. Janet Mills would create a 100-foot no-disturbance protection zone around Maine’s vernal pools, among other protections.
Posted inLocal & State, News, Schools and Education
EPA restores $1.6M UMaine PFAS grant
The federal agency’s reversal comes 1 month after it declared that the University of Maine’s research into ways to reduce the effects of forever chemicals on farms was inconsistent with the EPA’s funding priorities.
Posted inUncategorized
UMaine professor wins $1M grant to take a new look at old plants
The open source computer model that Jose Meireles is developing will use genetic analysis and reflective light to study already collected plants, saving field and lab time and money and protecting rare plants from destruction.
Posted inLocal & State, News
Federal cuts may hurt Maine’s ability to meet climate goals, scientists say
Reduced federal funding and staffing could hinder the Maine Climate Council’s ability to prepare for and track climate change, as well as the state’s ability to meet greenhouse gas reduction goals.
Posted inLocal & State, News
Maine’s next wildlife protection plan will consider climate threats
The once-a-decade conservation blueprint will weigh climate change threats, include plants as well as animals and emphasize habitat protection.