Environmental Battles

Two bits of news today on the environmental front. First, The Natural Resources Council of Maine and the Natural Resources Defense Council are suing IP over the allegedly illegal pollution the Androscoggin River.

There are two ways IP is violating the Clean Water Act, Carson said. "They do not have a permit now to pollute. They have not had one since 2001. It is illegal under the federal Clean Water Act to discharge into the river, or any water body, without a valid operating permit." The state permitting process "has been an endless string of broken promises to people who live along the river. Our patience has been worn out," he said.

Second, a coalition of smaller environmental groups are organizing a campaign to oppose the development plans put forward by Plum Creek for the Moosehead Lake region.

"We must protect and defend Moosehead now and for future generations," Jonathan Carter, a former Green Party candidate for governor and director of the Forest Ecology Network, said at a news conference in Portland. "This type of development doesn't belong in Maine."

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