The interior part of an air-source heat pump includes a fan that blows across the heated coils.

Working Waterfront

Heat pumps harvest warmth from cold air

Heating efficiency experts will tell you the best bucks you can spend on your home are those that keep the heat you've already paid for inside a little longer. Air sealing in the basement and around the chimney and installing plastic window inserts and caulking around the outside frames are… SEE MORE

Cal Trumann of ReVision Energy installs photovoltaics.

Working Waterfront

The case for solar electricity

Editor's note: Bill Behrens is the founder of ReVision Energy, based in Liberty. Behrens was a guest on the "Common Ground Radio" program on WERU-FM on Sept. 4, where the topics included energy produced by photovoltaic technology, which Behrens' company installs. Homeowners can let the electricity power the building and, if… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

How Chebeague Island crossed the digital divide

Islanders provide for themselves and Chebeague Island is no exception. Over the years, we Chebeaguers have built our own library, recreation center, museum, daycare center and affordable housing; created an assisted living facility; and even provided our own ferry service. Plus, we became our own town, seceding from Cumberland. So it should… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Shellfish, kelp may join lobster as cash ‘crops’

As fall approaches, lobstermen are seeing 3,000-pound days with lobsters at $4-$6 per pound. Emerging Asian markets and increased competition for supply from processors are two of the many factors driving this trend. Consumers of the McLobster roll might have helped, too. All of this good fortune deepens our economic… SEE MORE

An artist's depiction of what the redevelopment of the Portland Co. site will look like.

Working Waterfront

Portland’s waterfront clash a familiar struggle

The tension between communities seeking to keep their waterfronts economically viable and the residents who want to preserve their views is one that is happening all over the world, say national development experts. “I think that’s an inherent tension that won’t ever go away,” said Jon Golinger, a San Francisco-based… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

‘Community Economics’ is topic of next Community Institute session

Cities and towns in Maine are making decisions each day that improve their economic health or, unfortunately, can make things harder for community members, businesses and taxpayers. The Community Institute, a program of the Friends of Midcoast Maine, offers its fourth workshop on such matters, Community Economics, on Thursday, Oct. 22… SEE MORE

The members of the Edgecomb Community Solar Farm Association with their ground array. Another array is mounted on the barn behind them.

Working Waterfront

Maine’s first community solar farm signals trend

Lynne and Christopher Gilbert of Bristol had long been interested in solar power. Unfortunately, a solar array wouldn’t have worked on their roof, since it’s not the best angle for the sun and there are many trees around it. Last summer, they were at a meeting of the Midcoast Green… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Writer Paul Greenberg has vision for restoring fish, food link

By Catherine Schmitt Paul Greenberg is the author of American Catch: The Fight for Our Local Seafood and Four Fish: The Future of Our Last Wild Food. A lifelong fisherman, Greenberg has written for The New York Times, National Geographic and GQ, among other publications. Greenberg received both a… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

A summer of learning, leadership along Maine coast

On Swan's Island, community leaders and nearly 200 residents debated the future of the Swan's Island Electric Cooperative, the ratepayer owned distributor of electricity on that island and nearby Frenchboro (Long Island). There is nothing so heartening as watching community members of diverse background and economic standing give stump… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Adventure, comfort blended in Café Miranda chef’s book

An anchor of Rockland’s restaurant scene, Café Miranda has maintained its popularity for over 20 years. These days its founder, Kerry Altiero, isn’t content to just rest on his laurels, hailed as Maine’s “pioneer chef” and a prize-winner in culinary competitions. His creative restlessness and curiosity still drive him to… SEE MORE