Sydney Cromwell
@sydneycromwell.bsky.social
Environmental and freelance reporter, mostly reporting in Maine.
“Meetings like this normally take months,” Wayne Kinney, chair of the Franklin County Democrats, told voters at a meeting in Farmington on Saturday morning. “Here, we’ve done this in days.” www.nytimes.com/2026/07/19/u...
In Maine, Troy Jackson Gains Momentum in Bid to Replace Platner
Troy Jackson, a progressive former State Senate president, showed signs of significant strength, as half the state’s counties picked delegates to a convention where they will choose Graham Platner’s r...
nytimes.com
The story of Maine’s alewives is a conservation success decades in the making—and unmatched on the rest of the Atlantic coast. insideclimatenews.org/news/0607202...
Dam Removal Efforts Lead to a Stunning Comeback for Maine’s Alewives - Inside Climate News
Along most of the Atlantic coast, alewives are struggling after decades of damming and overfishing. But in Maine, the fish is rebounding—and towns’ historic harvests are growing.
insideclimatenews.org
Wild blueberries have "a really special place in the culture of Maine." But a changing climate is making it hard for farmers to stay in business. insideclimatenews.org/news/1105202...
Wild Blueberry Farms Across Maine Suffer as Climate Change Upends Growing Seasons - Inside Climate News
Like lobster rolls, wild blueberries are iconic in Maine. But heat and drought have set the plants back to a point where many small farmers are struggling against reduced yields and increased costs fo...
insideclimatenews.org
The invasive emerald ash borer, native to northeast Asia, has spread to 37 states over the past quarter century—killing almost all of the ash trees it infests. In Maine, however, a coalition of basketmakers, scientists and government officials are searching for a future for their trees.
The Wabanaki Basketmakers’ Plans to Save Maine’s Ash Trees - Inside Climate News
The invasive emerald ash borer, native to northeast Asia, has spread to 37 states over the past quarter century, killing nearly all of the ash trees it infests. But in Maine, a coalition of basketmake...
insideclimatenews.org
“This is our way of giving back and taking care of this tree that’s taken care of our family for so long.” Wabanaki basketmakers and scientists are working on ways to save brown ash, which is crucial for basketry, from an invasive beetle creeping across Maine. insideclimatenews.org/news/3003202...
The Wabanaki Basketmakers’ Plans to Save Maine’s Ash Trees - Inside Climate News
The invasive emerald ash borer, native to northeast Asia, has spread to 37 states over the past quarter century, killing nearly all of the ash trees it infests. But in Maine, a coalition of basketmake...
insideclimatenews.org
She didn't get a name-drop in my final ice-cover article, but Zoe was definitely the star of my trip out onto the ice with the Lake Stewards.
Sometimes reporting gets interactive. Here's me holding a hose while the Lake Stewards gather water samples on Highland Lake.
Maine’s lakes and ponds are icing over later in the winter and thawing earlier in the spring. On average, they’re experiencing 20 to 25 fewer days of ice than in the 1850s. “It’s an aspect of Maine that conceivably will be history,” Richard Behr said.
For Maine’s Lakes, Shorter Ice Seasons Mean Loss of Water Quality, Winter Traditions - Inside Climate News
One lifelong resident remembers driving out onto lakes with his family as a boy without worrying about the thickness of the ice. Now, Maine’s lakes have 25 fewer ice days per winter.
insideclimatenews.org
“People out in areas like this are like, ‘What do we do? Where do we even start?’” insideclimatenews.org/news/2412202...
Nonprofit Center Works with Rural Maine Towns to Prepare for and Protect Against Extreme Weather - Inside Climate News
Weather disasters are shared experiences in the Maine foothills and communities are preparing for a wetter, warmer future.
insideclimatenews.org
In Waterville, Maine, a restaurant called Only Pans was, resolutely, open. The owners, Jay Coelho and Desiree Sirois, decided closing early for weather was not for them. “We’re open every day,” Mr. Coelho said . “We’re like the post office.” www.nytimes.com/2025/12/02/w...
Winter Storm Rolls Into Northeast, Leaving a Mess of Snow and Ice
nytimes.com
Three years ago, Maine was the first state in the nation to recognize the risks of PFAS by outlawing the use of sewage sludge on farmland. But PFAS, testing showed, had already seeped into drinking-water wells and crop roots, tainting vegetables, beef and milk. insideclimatenews.org/news/2411202...
Maine Was First To Ban Spreading PFAS-Contaminated Sludge on Farmland. Now Sludge Is Filling up Landfills. - Inside Climate News
Well before the ban took effect, the “forever chemicals” linked to cancer, birth defects and other serious health problems had tainted drinking-water wells, vegetable roots, beef and milk in Maine.
insideclimatenews.org
A group of volunteers from the Passamaquoddy tribe have created a community clam garden in an attempt to bring the species—and its historical role as a major tribal food source—back. Part 3 of 3 on the Sipayik community's quest for a more resilient future. insideclimatenews.org/news/3008202...
Can Clams Make a Comeback on a Tribal Reservation in Maine? - Inside Climate News
Softshell clams flourished for centuries on the Passamaquoddy’s Pleasant Point Reservation, before overfishing and climate change. Now, more than a million are maturing in a garden created three years...
insideclimatenews.org
For this tribe living at the eastern edge of Maine, climate change is playing havoc with their tap water, creating even more hurdles between the Passamaquoddy and reliable clean water. Part 2 of 3 on the Sipayik community's quest for a more resilient future. insideclimatenews.org/news/3108202...
Climate Change Worsens Half-Century of Drinking Water Problems for Maine Native Reservation - Inside Climate News
The tap water in Sipayik has smelled and tasted bad for years. A new, deep well in town has been helping, but now the Trump administration has clawed back grant funds for water testing and filtration.
insideclimatenews.org
On the Sipayik peninsula in Maine, Passamaquoddy tribe members are surrounded on three sides by water, and on all sides by reminders of their vulnerability to a changing climate. Part 1 of 3 on the Sipayik community's quest for a more resilient future. insideclimatenews.org/news/3008202...
In Far Northeastern Maine, a Native Community Fights to Adapt to Climate Change - Inside Climate News
Sea level rise, dwindling fisheries and Trump budget cuts make the Passamaquoddy tribe’s resiliency quest a test of smart planning and stubborn will.
insideclimatenews.org
As climate change accelerates sea level rise and increases the intensity of tropical storms, insurance companies are beginning to re-evaluate whether they can afford to insure buildings that are expected to be damaged over and over again. insideclimatenews.org/news/1007202...
Can Shoreline Restoration Rein in Rising Flood Insurance Prices? - Inside Climate News
A pilot program on Dauphin Island, Alabama, aims to find out.
insideclimatenews.org
A fish passage project on the Alabama River is navigating some roadblocks, as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and The Nature Conservancy try to create a partnership that works for both organizations.
Fish passage project ‘dammed up’ in approval process
Project would reconnect 230 miles of migratory routes
southern-science.com
"It’s really a win-win. It’s a win for climate, it’s a win for the environment, it’s a huge win for farmers." Read more about the Soil & Climate Initiative's work to make agriculture more sustainable in Alabama and throughout the country.
A new farming (re)generation
Mississippi Delta program encourages healthier soil, sustainable farms
southern-science.com
A marsh restoration on Dauphin Island is creating new habitat and slowing down flooding. Now, a researcher with The Water Institute is asking whether it can make flood insurance cheaper for nearby homeowners. southern-science.com/2025/06/05/m...
Marsh insurance
Can shoreline restoration rein in rising flood insurance prices?
southern-science.com
Native plants are the foundation of healthy habitats across Alabama. This year, endangered plant species will be included in the state's official conservation plan for the first time. southern-science.com/2025/05/01/s...
State prepares conservation plan for next decade
Plants, habitat “corridors” added for first time
southern-science.com
When a Trump cabinet official visited two Alabama mines last week, he didn’t mention their checkered safety record, including the 2023 death of a miner that federal officials concluded was the fault of the mine.
Trump Official Visits, Touts Alabama Coal Mine With Thousands of Federal Safety Violations - Inside Climate News
Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum visited two Warrior Met mines to emphasize the administration’s commitment to lifting regulations on the extraction of ‘clean beautiful coal.’ He did not mention ...
insideclimatenews.org