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Ethan Hughes and Sarah Wilcox-Hughes, center, sat for brunch, joined by their daughters, Etta, left, and Isla, front right, and some visitors to the Possibility Alliance, on Aug. 8, 2026. Photo by Joseph Ciembroniewicz for The Maine Monitor. |
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Maine family lives without modern amenities to protest environmental destruction
By Kate Kaufman, Fitzgerald Reporting Fellow at The Maine Monitor
On May 25, 2024, more than 100 people gathered on the site of a potential land-based fish farm along the Little River in Belfast. The protest followed six years of conflict between the city’s residents and Nordic Aquafarms, the corporation behind the proposed build. The day-long demonstration involved singing and dancing, and, eventually, a number of kids and families climbing onto the roof of the building that was set to become a fish farm office.
“I’m here for all generations, for everyone to have access to water and all beings to have access to water,” Ethan Hughes, a Belfast resident who climbed on the roof with his two daughters, told FOX ABC Maine at the time.
The Hughes family had been involved in the pushback since 2018 when Nordic Aquafarms first purchased the plot of land. At the time, Ethan participated in several community discussions and public hearings, speaking out against a corporation he saw as contributing to ocean destruction.
The fish farm demonstration is just one example of the Hughes family’s decades of environmental activism. Ethan travels throughout Maine, and around the world, to stand against corporations he sees as exploiting natural resources and Indigenous peoples. He and his family also protest humanity’s disconnection from nature by attempting to embody the world they hope to see. |
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Last week saw lots of energy news in the state. The Maine Public Utilities Commission announced that it’s chosen an 800-megawatt wind farm proposed by Clearway Energy and a transmission line between Haynesville and Pittsfield proposed by Avangrid for the long-awaited Northern Maine Renewable Energy Program. The projects are meant to generate new, utility-scale clean energy in Aroostook County and deliver it to the rest of Maine and New England. If built, the proposed wind farm would be the largest renewable energy project in the state.
The commission also heard expert testimony in Central Maine Power’s ongoing rate case on a previously obscure financial metric called return on equity, which has become a flashpoint in the case. Utilities pay for their infrastructure in part with equity, or investments from shareholders. The return on this equity is essentially the profit investors receive, and is supposed to be large enough to attract enough investment to build and maintain a reliable electric grid, but not so large that it burdens customers unnecessarily. That ideal number is up for debate, both in Maine and nationwide. |
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For several weeks, Monitor Local contributor Melissa Razdrih has been following the story of a proposed underwater data center that a Massachusetts real estate developer is seeking to build over 27 acres in the Bay of Fundy’s Western Passage, between Eastport and Passamaquoddy Bay.
Last week, Razdrih reported that the Eastport Planning Board unanimously recommended that the city council adopt an ordinance to permanently ban data centers within Eastport city limits, which include the tidal zone. The council had previously adopted a temporary, 180-day ban while they reviewed two ordinances proposed by residents who have formed a group called the Eastport Coalition for Healthy Oceans. Members of the Passamaquoddy Tribe have also been vocal opponents of the data center project. City councilors are expected to vote on the ordinances at a special meeting on Sept. 9.
In the meantime, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is reviewing developer DeepGreen’s preliminary permit application. If approved, a preliminary permit would give the company 48 months to conduct engineering and environmental studies required to secure funding and launch the project. The proposal is open for public comment.
Though the DeepGreen project’s underwater nature makes it unique, debate over data centers more broadly continues statewide. The Maine Data Center Advisory Council, established in April by Gov. Janet Mills after she vetoed legislation that would have imposed a statewide moratorium on large data centers, has been meeting since June and recently held two public listening sessions. Maine Public reported that many who spoke are still pushing for a moratorium or an outright ban. The advisory council is expected to produce a report with recommendations in January 2027. |
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Have feedback, a correction or know of something we should look into? Send it to our newsroom. You can also email The Monitor's editors: editors@themainemonitor.org.
The Maine Monitor is a publication of the Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting, an independent and nonpartisan nonprofit news organization that produces investigative journalism. We believe news is a public good and keep our news free to access. We have no paywall and do not charge for our newsletters. If you value the reporting we do for Maine, please consider making a donation! We cannot do this reporting without your support. |
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