Trump, Lepage and Penobscot Bay

[Ron Huber]

We're going to want to work with PEER once more, to protect our bay, our watershed, our Gulf of Maine, and all the dry lands around them. The folks at Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility will be needed, as the heat comes down on the permit reviewers of state and federal conservation agencies to rubberstamp ecologically objectionable projects, because.... "money!" .

While some disagree - and for very good reasons - Sears Island _could_ once more end up in play under the coming Administration and Congress.

Just in case. let's take a look back at what happened last time a corrupt president, congresscritter and governor banded together to break federal law in an attempt to force a rubber-stamping of the wood chip port plan: (Thanks to PEER, the plan was ultimately thwarted!). See below.

It was the Angus v Eelgrass Caper. Read the backstory documents: federal state & NGO emails & letters: http://www.penbay.org/searsisland/si_cargoport.html

Then, read on: PEER saved Sears Island in the in the early 1990s from the machinations of President Bill Clinton, Governor Angus King, and Representative -turning-Senator Olympia Snowe. The trio'd conspired together against the US EPA's local project permit reviewer, Kyla Bennett.

Bennett was holding the line that the bioeconomic values of the natural island's upland species mixes and the fertile eelgrass strewn shoals along its western shore, a scant mile below the mouth of Penobscot River, were an increasingly rare combination of upland, wetland, intertidal and subtidal environments and biologies on the Maine coast. The National Marine Fisheries Service and US Fish & Wildlife Service agreed. The US Army Corps of Engineers, considering the state's application, found no reason to disagree with those agencies. The ball was in King's court.

The Clinton/King/Snowe strategy was get Clinton to order EPA HQ to direct Region 1's EPA director John Devillars to take Bennett off the job of reviewing King's woodchip port plan. He could cite vague 'performance' issues. They did, and Kyla got reassigned from her review of the Sears Island Project.

But thanks to the relentless FOIAing of the EPA and the Corps and state agencies by yours truly and by veteran land protection activist /retired rocket scientist Julian Holmes, as well as good relations by Islesboro Island Trust, Sierra Club and other eco-yuppies with the EPA NMFS and USFWS field crew, we quickly found out and urged Bennett to contact PEE & vice versa.

She did and PEER filed a suit against Devillars in federal court in Boston for his unlawful anti-Hatch Act-ivism. Then PEER's Jeff Ruch made John Devillars an offer he couldnt refuse: If he would give Kyla back her job, and remove the BS they'd stuck in her personnel file, PEER would withdraw their lawsuit against him.

Devillars caved, PEER withdrew its lawsuit and Bennett got her job back. Less than a year later? Foiled would-be game-rigger Angus King complains to Maine public radio that "the game was rigged" and he was now forced to withdraw the sears island port plan. "Eeeeeelgrass!" the out-rigged King groaned, blaming Nature. "Not only that but SHADE on eelgrass!"

Backstory http://www.penbay.org/searsisland/si_cargoport.html

EPILOGUE . A couple years later, PEER helped Allagash Wilderness Waterway's long time Supervisor Tim Caverly successfully sue the state of Maine after Conservation Commissioner Ron Lovaglio fired him for speaking out in favor of protecting the waterway's wilderness character, and publicly criticizing the state of Maine for disregarding the Allagash management plan. (I.e., for doing his job.)

Will Sears Island be attacked again? What other parts of Penobscot Bay are at risk? Will the big gasser wannabees revive their pipelines and port plans? Everything wild and natural is in play. Keep an eye on your planning board agendas . Let me know when bay-bashing plans arise.

Ron

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Ron Huber

Friends of Penobscot Bay

POB 1871,  Rockland Maine 04841

FB: facebook.com/penobscotbay

Web: www.penbay.net  e coast...@gmail.com 
tel: 207-691-7485 * cell 207-593-2744