Frannie Stuart, 11, of Brunswick, greets new-born lambBRUNSWICK — Spring means the daffidolls are starting to peek their green noses through the brown leaves, the forsythia is starting to bud, a few osprey have returned from the south, the sap is starting to drip into the buckets hanging off the maple trees and, of course, farmers are welcoming a new batch of spring lambs.

More than a hundred kids (and their parents) visited the Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust and Crystal Spring Community Farm for their annual New Lamb Open Barn Day on Sunday showing off their 2011 crop of brand lambs, all 122 of them.

by Gina Hamilton
Coastal Journal staff

AUGUSTA — David Bernhardt, Commissioner of the Maine Department of Transportation (MDOT), abruptly suspended, probably permanently, the Gateway 1 project, after the department had invested more than six years in helping to develop it. In a letter to Don White, chair of the implementation steering committee for Gateway 1, Bernhardt wrote: "Having been briefed by MaineDOT staff about the Gateway 1 planning process, the commitments contained in the Inter-Local Agreement, and the process by which municipalities would approve (or reject) moving forward with forming a corridor coalition, I discussed this information with the Governor and senior staff in the Administration. We have come to the conclusion that while Gateway 1 has been a very worthy effort, it does not correspond with the immediate priorities of this administration. Therefore, we have made the decision to suspend the Gateway 1 planning process."

by Gina Hamilton
Coastal Journal staff

SOMEWHERE IN THE GULF OF MAINE — According to a report issued by the University of Maine on Tuesday, offshore wind power located more than 10 miles off the coast will be competitive with conventional sources in 2020.

University researchers say it seems possible to hit a target of 8-10 cents per kilowatt hour for energy delivered to the grid, which is on par with current costs.  It is possible that offshore wind will have the advantage by that time, if the price of oil and gas continues to rise at its current pace.

Building floating platforms on land and towing them to their deepwater locations will be much cheaper than erecting turbine towers on the sea floor, researchers say.  The current preferred design in the U.S. and in Europe is to build towers from the seabed, which is much more costly.

by Gina Hamilton
Coastal Journal staff

AUGUSTA — On Monday, Governor Paul LePage proposed a reduced list of regulatory reforms, dropping from the list some of the most controversial items.

Proposals such as repealing Maine's Kid-Safe Products Act and electronic waste law, and changing state regulations for vernal pools and air emissions, were excluded from the governor's amendment to LD1, the omnibus regulatory reform bill.