Communities Invested in River Restoration

UMaine Alert

Posted: April 19, 2024 - 1:32 PM

At approximately 9:24 a.m. on Friday, April 19, a University of Maine graduate student was struck by a university vehicle on Long Road at the University of Maine campus in Orono. The student reports that they are at a local hospital with minor injuries.

Emergency services, including the Orono Fire Department, University Volunteer Ambulance Corps, University of Maine Police Department, Orono Police Department and Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office responded to the scene.

The university vehicle involved in the incident was a Chevrolet Express van. It was being operated by a university employee.

Counseling services and support are available for students, faculty or staff who may have been affected. The Counseling Center can be reached at 207-581-1392 and the Dean of Students Office can be reached at 207-581-1406.

The scene has been cleared and Long Road is now accessible. An investigation is being conducted by the University of Maine Police Department with assistance from the Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office Crash Reconstruction Unit. Any witnesses to the incident are encouraged to contact Lt. Noel Santiago at noel.santiago@maine.edu.

October 27, 2014 News

Successful river restoration requires a lot more than a focus on improving the biophysical. Renewal of these important freshwater resources requires buy-in from local communities and organizations as well as close consideration of social dimensions. Eileen Johnson, a recent doctoral graduate based at the Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions, studied these essential collaborations.

Johnson and a research team based at Bowdoin College, Bates College and the University of Southern Maine made an interesting discovery. Though communities each defined restoration differently, the team found that towns and cities along the Kennebec and Androscoggin were invested in river and riverfront improvement.

“We found that many communities do not wait until significant restoration has been achieved, but respond to shifting public perception towards these systems, expanding opportunities to recreate on or alongside rivers. And we found that communities use these projects as a mode of engendering public support for restoration actions,” said Johnson who received her PhD at UMaine in Ecology & Environmental Sciences. See more on this story here