Forestry and the Environment

Central Maine promotes UMaine’s soil testing service 

Central Maine promoted UMaine’s soil testing service and shared a recommendation to chaos garden. This form of gardening involves using up any old seeds you’ve got lying around. The UMaine soil testing service notes that excessive rain last year washed nitrogen out of the soil, so a soil test would be a good idea for […]

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Bangor Daily News interviews UMaine climatologist Sean Birkel on frost quakes

The Bangor Daily News interviewed Sean Birkel, a Maine state climatologist at the University of Maine Climate Change Institute, about frost quakes. “Maine winters are warming and as part of a changing climate, we are seeing a tendency for more extreme weather events. In winter this can mean patterns that bring extreme cold followed by […]

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A photo of the Maine woods

From pests to pine health, $1.4M allows new forest research to take root 

The Northern Forest Region — 26 million acres of woodlands spanning Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and northern New York — is changing due to climate change, invasive insects and other threats. Protecting these ecologically, economically and culturally vital forests will require novel tools and knowledge, prompting new University of Maine research launching this spring.    UMaine […]

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FOX 22 highlights federal funding for UMaine bioproducts research

WFVX TV (FOX 22 Bangor) promoted $745,000 in federal funding for a University of Maine research project to accelerate the transition from plastic to a more sustainable, recyclable and biodegradable forest-based packaging for consumer products. This will be achieved through rapid prototyping and the development of a pilot scale production of high-value molded pulp products.

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Maine Monitor cites UMaine research on road salt

In a story titled “How pesticides, road salt threaten Maine’s water supply,” The Maine Monitor cited a 2022 University of Maine study which found that Maine used 493,000 tons of road salt in 2019-20, equal to roughly 787 pounds of salt for every resident. The evidence of many different pollutants found in road salt can […]

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AMC working with UMaine and others to examine mercury in dragonfly larvae

Appalachian Mountain Club scientists collaborated with partners from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the National Park Service, Dartmouth College, and the University of Maine to examine how mercury bio-accumulates in dragonfly larvae sentinels. This research shows how much mercury is in a given ecosystem, based on differences in habitat across the country.

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UMaine joins study on pastures in Northeast

The Multistate Research Fund Impacts Program reported that the University of Maine’s School of Food and Agriculture is participating in a study on pastures in the Northeastern U.S. Scientists have made discoveries about the health benefits of pasture-produced milk, which could increase demand and prices and help dairies stay in business. The project includes Cornell […]

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Leahy speaks to WFVX about wood banks in need

Jessica Leahy, University of Maine Henry W. Saunders Distinguished Professor in Forestry, spoke with WFVX (Channel 7) about wood banks needing support as they become established. “All of the existing wood banks are distributing their wood almost as quickly as they can produce it and dry it,” she said. Leahy also discussed the assistance she […]

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Morning Ag Clips highlights award for School of Forest Resources

Morning Ag Clips highlighted the University of Maine School of Forest Resources receiving the Austin H. Wilkins Forest Stewardship Award. The award, which recognizes the impact of the school’s teaching and research on Maine’s working forests, was given by the Maine TREE Foundation in partnership with the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry.

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