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Good morning from the shores of Gouldsboro Bay, where tourism is brisk despite intermittent rainfall. Some short-term rentals are booked solid — there is little in the way of hotels on the Schoodic Peninsula — while others have empty weeks.

There's no firm data on what's driving the vacancies and a few factors could be at play. Relatedly, though, the Portland Press Herald reported Friday that Maine saw 85,000 fewer travelers cross into Maine from Canada this May than in 2024.

In the news, more immigration detainees are flown out of Presque Isle to other locations out of state. And Whole Oceans says it still wants to build a land-based salmon farm in Bucksport, but on a smaller scale than originally proposed.

Paper mills in Maine and across the U.S. releasing more greenhouse gases than federal data shows

As the Trump administration eyes rollbacks on industrial emissions limits, a new report claims that paper mills are already dirtier than they appear.

Read this story by Emmett Gartner of The Maine Monitor

While The Maine Monitor does not place its content behind paywalls, some newsrooms we link to in this newsletter may. 

Recent food insecurity reports place Washington County as having the least regular access to food in New England, for both children and adults. | Quoddy Tides

Whole Oceans still intends to develop a recirculating aquaculture system on the former Verso Mill site in Bucksport. But the company plans to scale down the salmon farm operation to 3,000 metric tons. | Ellsworth American

A resort company has been ordered to pay $46,340 in workplace safety penalties for violations that contributed to the death of a longtime worker in Bar Harbor. | Bangor Daily News

For the second time in a month, immigration detainees were flown out of the Presque Isle Airport. | Bangor Daily News

A now four-year effort to reduce the number of short-term rentals in Bar Harbor isn’t showing significant signs of success. | Mount Desert Islander

Work has started on a new duplex in Northeast Harbor that is intended for purchase as year round housing at a reasonable price. The project is the work of Mount Desert 365. | Mount Desert Islander

The Criterion Theatre in Bar Harbor, which opened in 1932, is opening its doors again July 5 after a change in ownership. The flagship performance center is now a private nonprofit centered on music and arts education. | Mount Desert Islander

The Portland-based Immigrant Legal Advocacy Project says the group is seeing more frequent immigration arrests resulting from traffic violations. | Maine Public

Passamaquoddy celebrate success in restoring alewife populations. | Quoddy Tides

Analysts tracking the buildout of EV infrastructure say there is an ‘emerging charging divide’ between rural and urban areas. See what Downeast Maine's EV infrastructure is like. | Daily Yonder

Have feedback, a correction or know of something we should look into? Send it to our newsroom. If you have feedback or a tip that you want to send to Jacqueline Weaver
directly, email her at: jacqueline@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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