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Francesca Gundrum is Maine Audubon’s advocacy director.
There is a lot of support in this state for the protection of wildlife and wildlife habitat, and Maine Audubon and our partners organizations are doing everything we can to respond. Maine Audubon testified on 80 individual bills in Maine’s 131st Legislature, a new record, and our members, supporters and volunteers sent thousands of individual messages to state lawmakers or added their names to petitions.
It’s a lot to keep track of, so we wanted to help break things down by choosing five of the most important wins for Maine wildlife in the 131st Legislature, which ran from January 2023 to May 2024.
LD 1895 is about promoting safe offshore wind in the Gulf of Maine.
Transitioning away from fossil fuels toward local renewables is critical to protect Maine’s wildlife from the impacts of climate change, and no technology may deliver as much power with as relatively few impacts as floating offshore wind. LD 1895 will help ensure that Maine’s people, wildlife and climate benefit from renewable energy produced in the Gulf of Maine, and that potential impacts to wildlife and marine habitats are avoided or mitigated to the greatest extent possible.
LD 958 will protect loons from lead poisoning.
Common loons are one of Maine’s most iconic birds, and we continue to work to reduce one of their largest threats: lead poisoning. Loons can accidentally ingest discarded lead tackle from lake beds or the bodies of fish they eat, causing illness and death. LD 958 expands upon legislation passed a few years ago and initiates a phase-out for the sale and use of small-sized painted lead fishing tackle in the state.
LD 670 will set bird-safe building guidelines.
An estimated 1 billion birds die in the U.S. each year after colliding with glass windows, and now Maine is taking action. LD 670 directs the state to develop guidelines for the use of bird-safe architecture in public buildings. Passage of the bill positions Maine as one of just three states in the nation with statewide legislation addressing bird/glass collisions, putting our state on the cutting edge of yet another emerging environmental issue.
LD 57 adds animals to the Maine Endangered Species Act.
Maine Audubon was proud to support a bill from the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife to increase protections for eight vulnerable species by listing them under the Maine Endangered Species Act: Ashton’s cuckoo bumble bee, bank swallow, Bicknell’s thrush, blackpoll warbler, cliff swallow, margined tiger beetle, saltmarsh sparrow and tricolored bat. For the first time in the act’s history, several of these species were added due to climate-related threats. Listing on Maine’s Endangered Species Act sets the stage for subsequent protective management.
LD 2101 improved the enforcement of shoreland zoning.
A few lakeside property owners violate crucial shoreland zoning laws by cutting healthy trees along the water’s edge, removing vegetation that stabilizes shorelines or by adding jetties, stairs and other features. LD 2101 bill gives Maine’s towns and the Land Use Planning Commission a necessary tool to help stop these egregious violators, including the ability to suspend or revoke violator’s permits, and file civil action to recover fees or penalties.
There are many more wins to celebrate — including increased funding for the management of aquatic invasive species, expanding the consideration of impacts to endangered species, and protecting the rights of Mainers to plant native plants — and more. We fell short on some bills, though, too, including: efforts to advance smart growth principles, restore full self-determination for the Wabanaki Nations and collaborate on the future of Maine’s forests.
But we’ll be back again this winter to work on many of the issues that didn’t get over the finish line in the 131st Legislature, and add new priorities for the 132nd. With the continued support from our environmental champions in Augusta and Mainers across the state, we’ll make sure our wildlife and human communities have a bright future.
