No more #Maine #DataCenters for now, lawmakers say

Lawmakers advanced a measure that drew attention last month when one senator said it could kill a previously unannounced project in Sanford.

by Daniel Kool, Posted March 5, Updated March 6, 2026

"Maine lawmakers voted Thursday to advance a bill that would stop the development of new data centers in the state for more than a year.

"The bill, #LD307, would create a temporary limitation on data centers with electric loads of at least 20 megawatts by preventing the state, local governments and quasi-governmental agencies from issuing permits or other approvals until 90 days after the first session of the 133rd Legislature adjourns.

"That will likely be around October 2027, the bill’s sponsor, said Rep. Melanie Sachs, D-Freeport.

"That would give a new “Data Center Coordination Council,” also created by the bill, time to study and review the potential impacts of building the centers in Maine. The Department of Energy Resources would be responsible for convening the body.

"Sachs has said the restriction is designed to address future growth without impeding projects that are already well underway, such as one pegged for the former Loring Air Force Base.

"Members of the Legislature’s Energy, Utilities and Technology Committee have debated the bill for weeks.

"On Thursday, they voted 8-5 in favor of passing the bill with amendments, sending it to the broader Legislature. The committee vote fell along party lines, with Democrats supporting the measure."

Read more:
https://www.pressherald.com/2026/03/05/no-more-maine-data-centers-for-now-lawmakers-say/

#SanfordME #JayME #LewistonME #WiscassetME #AWS #NoDatacenters #NoAI #MainePol #UnrestrictedGrowth #WaterIsLife #NoisePollution

How soon people forget...

A century ago, #FrancoAmericans were targeted in #Maine like today’s #Somali #immigrants

Opinion by Tommy Pinette, March 3, 2026

"Two years ago, I learned the infamous #KuKluxKlan exploded in popularity throughout Maine during its resurgence in the 1920s. Across the United States, the terrorist group amassed hundreds of thousands of new followers in a rather clever dissemblance as a community service and fraternal organization. At one point, in fact, approximately 30% of Maine’s native-born population were enrolled members of the KKK. Yet they did not target Somali-Americans, people on work visas, or permanent residents from Africa — they vehemently attacked the people we now call Franco-Americans.

"Prominent Franco communities in #LewistonME, #RumfordME, #OldTownME, #AugustaME, and #WatervilleME, called 'petits Canadas,' became targets of violence for the #KKK.

"One local history of the Franco-American community of Old Town recounts a horrific stand-off at French Island: holding torches and weapons, a mob of angry klansmen attempted to cross the bridge onto the island in order to burn it down. Only the rapid efforts of men in the community to block the bridge physically kept the island from going up in flames.

"And yet, I hear many of my Franco relatives talk poorly about immigrants. They repeat similar slogans to the ones President Donald Trump spreads about immigrants who come from Africa, particularly those from East Africa: “they shouldn’t be here … Somalia is not even a country” Animus defines how many Franco-Americans understand immigrants, the people who stand in the very same place their ancestors once stood a couple generations ago.

"Do not forget that our #WhitePrivilege came at a great historical cost in the forms of systemic French language suppression, decades of shameful stereotypes, and barriers to higher education. For almost 70 years, the state of Maine had a legislative policy of only offering public education in English. We must remember our ancestors, the memères and pepères who endured the same xenophobic insults immigrants in America face today."

Read more:
https://www.bangordailynews.com/2026/03/03/opinion/opinion-contributor/franco-americans-targeted-like-todays-immigrants-joam40zk0w/

Archived version:
https://archive.ph/83Hi6

#USPol #WorldPol #MainePol #NewAmericans #NewMainers #USHistory #MaineHistory #ICESucks #AbolishICE #Hypocrisy

Meanwhile, in #Maine...

As #dataCenters look to rural #NewEngland, Maine considers a moratorium

The bill’s advocates want answers about how data centers will affect energy costs in the region, which already has some of the country’s highest electricity prices.

By: Julia Tilton, The Daily Yonder - February 23, 2026

"Maine legislators are currently considering #LD307, a resolution bill that would establish a data center coordination council to provide input and evaluate policy options for data center development in the state. The bill comes after a series of data center proposals have been met with local pushback.

"Shortly after #WiscassetME voted to pause its data center conversations in November of 2025, residents in #LewistonME, lobbied their city councilors to reject a $300 million #AIDataCenter on December 16, 2025. There, community members organized over a weekend to change city councilors’ minds from supporting the idea when it was first made public on December 11, 2025, to voting unanimously to reject it the following week.

" 'It really speaks to the importance of adequate public participation and notice,
said Dana Colihan, the co-executive director of Slingshot, an environmental health and justice organization in New England. Colihan is based in Maine and helped residents of Wiscasset and Lewiston organize. 'When community members do find out about these projects, they have really serious concerns around the impacts to their local environment and wellbeing.'

"Richard Davis was among the residents in Wiscasset and neighboring #WestportIsland who, in November of 2025, pushed Wiscasset’s town selectboard, which functions like a city council, to pause conversations about developing a $5 billion data center on a town-owned parcel of land along the Back River, which empties into Maine’s #CascoBay.

"Davis, who lives along the Back River about a mile and a half from the proposed development, said little information about the facility’s end user, utility usage, or power source was provided after it was first made public on September 16, 2025.

"This caused him and others to worry about how the site would affect the town’s resources, including the grid. Along with his neighbors, Davis started #ProtectWiscasset, a grassroots campaign opposing the data center."

Read more:
https://mainemorningstar.com/2026/02/23/as-data-centers-look-to-rural-new-england-maine-considers-a-moratorium/

#MainePol #MaineResists #ResistDatacenters #NoEnergyForAI #AISucks #ResistanceIsFertile

I always find it interesting to see how the opposing side spins stuff...

Planned #Datacenter in #Maine under threat from proposed moratorium

Project in #SanfordME could be killed before it gets off the ground

February 20, 2026

By Dan Swinhoe

"Proposals to bring in a data center moratorium in Maine have threatened [notice the language] plans for a new campus [yeah, like it's a school] in the Pine Tree State.

"The proposed bill, sponsored by Representative #MelanieSachs, includes a two-year moratorium on facilities above 20MW in the state while the impacts of data centers are studied and more stringent controls are put in place.

"However, State Sen. #MattHarrington, R-Sanford, said a pause on development would endanger a new data center planned for his district, detailing a previously unreported project. [Which involves a LOT of SECRECY!!!]

"During a works session, he said the moratorium would impact a proposed 100-300MW project being proposed by a developer, later named as the Northern New England Energy Corporation.

"He said at the time that the project was well into the planning process and had met with local officials and Maine's Department of Energy Resources. [Wah, wah...]

" 'You're completely blindsiding this [OUT OF STATE, AND CONNECTED TO A CANADIAN GAS COMPANY] business,' Harrington said, according to a report from Maine Public.

"Harrington revealed more details in a follow-up Facebook post, saying the project was being targeted on land in Sanford, York County, some 35 miles (56.3km) southwest of Portland.

" 'I was recently briefed by representatives of the Northern New England Energy Company about their plans to develop an energy generation project utilizing a mix of American-made fuel cells, solar power, and battery storage to produce all of the electricity needed to serve a colocated data center,' he said in the post.

"While he was asked not to publicly discuss the project, he said the surprise proposal of a moratorium 'might stop this opportunity for our community from coming to fruition before we even had a chance to consider it altogether.'

"According to its website, Northern New England Energy Corporation (#NNEEC) is an energy company based in Vermont.

"A subsidiary of Énergir, #NNEEC is the parent company of Vermont utility and energy distribution provider #GreenMountainPower Corporation, #VermontGasSystems Inc., and #EGVInsurance Inc.

"#Énergir, formerly known as Gaz Métro, is a Canadian energy company and the largest natural gas distribution company in Quebec.

"Maine has a small data center market, with Data Center Map listing just eight facilities in the state, largely centered around Brunswick and Portland.

"A data center is being proposed in the former #LoringAirForceBase, and another is being planned next to a former nuclear power plant in #WiscassetME.

"A project in #LewistonME was rejected by local officials last year." [YES, BY THE PEOPLE!!!]

https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/planned-data-center-in-maine-under-threat-from-proposed-moratorium/

#MainePol #BigGas #NoNewDatacenters

#LewistonME - #UMaineExtension hosts #vegetable and #fruit school on March 17

Lewiston, Maine — "University of Maine Cooperative Extension and the Maine Vegetable and Small Fruit Growers Association will co-host the Maine Vegetable and Fruit School on Tuesday, March 17, from 8:30 a.m.–4 p.m. at the University of Southern Maine – Lewiston Campus, Room 170, 51 Westminster Street.

The day-long program is designed for commercial vegetable and fruit growers, and will focus on pest management and crop production topics. Presentations will include pest management for strawberries, squash, cucumber, garlic, and onions; cherry tomato production, new vegetable varieties, post-harvest handling, and grape potential in New England. Presenters include UMaine Extension faculty and researchers. Pesticide applicator recertification credits and continuing education credits are available.

The $50 registration fee includes a catered lunch. Register by March 12 on the program webpage. Walk-ins are welcome but lunch will not be guaranteed for those participants. In case of bad weather, check the University of Southern Maine weather hotline at 207.780.4800."

Reasonable accomodations are possible.

FMI and to register:
https://extension.umaine.edu/2026/02/13/vegetable-and-fruit-school-march-17/

#SolarPunkSunday #GrowYourOwn #GrowYourOwnFood #GardeningWorkshops #MaineGardening

So, knowing the area, my guess is that they want to build this #datacenter in #SanfordME. However, once again, datacenter proponents are like, "Oh hey! We already talked to the Sanford Water District." From the article: "David Parent, superintendent of the Sanford Water District, said he had not heard of any such project." Let me guess. State Senator #MattHarrington got a big fat bonus from the mysterious Datacenter Wizard / Con Artist! Also, both #LewistonME and #WiscassetME have REJECTED datacenters!

Read more:
https://www.pressherald.com/2026/02/13/is-a-large-data-center-coming-to-southern-maine/

Archived version:
https://archive.md/Wq3U2

#WaterIsLife #NoDatacenters #MainePol #USPol #NoElectricityForDatacenters #NoWaterForDatacenters

#DemocracyNow - #ImmigrantRights Leader in #Maine Says #ICERaids Caused Panic & “Wave of Fear”

February 03, 2026

"Activists in Maine are resisting #ICE immigration raids in #PortlandME and #LewistonME that the #Trump administration dubbed 'Operation Catch of the Day.' The immigrant community in Maine has grown in recent years, with an influx of #AsylumSeekers and #Somali immigrants in particular. 'As a small state, community means a lot,' says #MufaloChitam, executive director of the Maine Immigrants’ Rights Coalition, adding that her organization has received thousands of phone calls to their immigrant support hotline in recent weeks."

Read more / watch / listen:
https://www.democracynow.org/2026/2/3/portland_maine_city_council_ice_lawsuits

#MaineResists #ResistICE #DefundICE #DefundBorderPatrol #MIRC #NewMainers #CatchOfTheDay #ICESucks #ICEOut #ICEOutOfMaine #MaineImmigrantRightsCoalition #ViewerSupportedNews

More than 1,000 rally in #PortlandME against #Trump, #ICE

The protest in Monument Square was just one of many demonstrations across the U.S. on Friday.

by Drew Johnson, January 30, 2026

PORTLAND — "Friday’s protest appeared to be one of the city’s largest in months, dwarfing recent protests that occurred during much warmer weather on hot, sunny summer weekends.

"But it was a frigid January afternoon, and more than 1,000 people turned out anyway. They huddled together, chanting, cheering and holding their signs over the clouds rising from their breaths.

"Real estate was scarce in Monument Square as the demonstrators condemned Trump administration policies, most notably the recent surge of federal immigration enforcement operations in Minnesota and Maine.

"The crowd stretched from One Monument Square to the bus stop across Center Street and lined the opposite side of Congress Street. When they marched, they extended from the square well down Exchange Street. They eventually made it all the way to Commercial Street, with police blocking off roads and forming an escort.

"The protest in Portland was just one of many demonstrations across the U.S. on Friday, which included a general strike where businesses shut down and students walked out of class, from #California, #Arizona and #Colorado, to #Michigan, #Minnesota and Maine.

"More than 200 Maine businesses participated in some capacity, either by closing their doors or donating a portion of profits to groups and organizations helping immigrants. Some businesses lined the square with tables, handing out hot chocolate, coffee and treats to demonstrators. Many area high schoolers — including in Portland and #LewistonME — walked out of or skipped school altogether."

Read more:
https://www.pressherald.com/2026/01/30/more-than-1000-rally-in-portland-against-trump-ice/

Archived version:
https://archive.md/E7tnG

#USPol #MainePol #ICEOutOfMaine #AbolishICE #MaineResists #ResistICE #DefundICE

#LewistonME High School students march in protest of #ICE

At the end of classes Friday, the group of about 60 made the march, holding up signs and stopping now and then to chant at passing traffic.

by Mark LaFlamme, January 30, 2026

LEWISTON — "It was bitter cold and windy Friday afternoon, but Lewiston High School student Evelyn Lenhert wouldn’t have dreamed of missing the #AntiICE protest.

"She feels too passionately about it. She’s too concerned about the prospect of ICE taking away her classmates and their families.

" 'I’m out here,' the freshman said, 'because I fear for the safety of my friends. ICE could come at any second and I’m just very scared about it.'

"Lenhert was one of several dozen students who made the march from the high school on East Avenue to Kennedy Park at Pine and Park streets.

"At the end of classes about 2 p.m., the group of about 60 began walking, holding up signs and stopping now and then to chant at passing traffic.

" 'No justice, no peace,' they chanted, 'get ICE off the streets!' "

Read more:
https://www.pressherald.com/2026/01/30/lewiston-high-school-students-march-in-protest-of-ice/

Archived version:
https://archive.md/jZYEg

#USPol #MainePol #ICEOutOfMaine #AbolishICE #MaineResists #ResistICE #DefundICE

#PortlandME and #LewistonMe are bracing for #ICE to come to their cities

By Sawyer Loftus, Bangor Daily News
moc.swenyliadrognab@sutfols
Published on: January 14, 2026

"Carl Sheline urged residents and businesses to know their rights and have a plan if they’re contacted by agents."

https://themainemonitor.org/portland-lewiston-bracing-for-ice/

#KYR #ICEOutMaine #ICEOut #KnowYourRights #Bystanders #Whistles #NoHumanIsIllegal #MainePol #USPol #ICESucks