Coincidence? Maybe not
Two front-page stories in this week’s edition may seem totally unrelated, but the careful reader will note an uncanny, even eerie, similarity between them.
One story has to do with Sappi Fine Paper being told by the United States Supreme Court, the highest court in the land, that it must install fish passage on several dams on the Presumpscot River. The other has to do with the 250th anniversary of Chief Polin’s death at the hands of early Windham settler Stephen Manchester.
What makes these two stories intertwine is the damming of the Presumpscot River and how the dams, even to this day, are causing ecological damage. What makes these two stories eerie and spooky is that Chief Polin hated the white settlers because they brought dams to his Presumpscot River, which choked off fish migratory patterns and valuable Indian fishing grounds. Polin lobbied the courts in those days to outlaw the damming of his river. They didn’t listen. Until now.
Sunday, May 14, was the 250th anniversary of Chief Polin’s death. He died at the hands of a Windham settler who wanted the dams. This Monday, May 15, is when the Supreme Court ruled that dams along the Presumpscot qualify under federal law for fish passage. In other words, it’s only a matter of time now, because of the court’s ruling, that fish will once again be able to swim from Casco Bay to Sebago Lake. Is this just a coincidence?
Wherever Chief Polin is now, he is surely smoking a peace pipe with old Stephen Manchester. Manchester may have had the last word in their feud on earth, but in death Polin’s relishing the Supreme Court’s last word. Polin’s frustrations concerning the damming of the Presumpscot have finally been relieved.
Polin’s not the only one reveling in the Supreme Court’s decision. Here and now, the Friends of the Presumpscot River are ecstatic because the high court’s decision ushers in a new day for the once-mighty river. Though there are still hurdles to jump (namely the removal of the Cumberland Mills Dam), the federal court has sided with environmental groups like the Friends saying the water rushing through the dams is a sort of discharge and therefore must be governed by the Clean Water Act, which requires fish passages on all qualifying rivers.
It was a good week for Chief Polin and other lovers of the Presumpscot. And here’s hoping the Cumberland Mills Dam can quickly be destroyed or manipulated so fish can make their way from the ocean to the lake.
What a wonderful day that will be – when the Presumpscot is a true river and not just a series of long, ripple-less ponds choked by concrete fish barricades.
Go on, spread out those bus stops
Kudos to the Windham School Department and Windham School Board for thinking of a way to battle high gas prices, while at the same time showing true fiscal responsibility to the taxpayers.
According to a front-page story this week, the school department is proposing to cut the number of stops on bus routes. Reducing the number of stops makes sense because each stop requires extra time, extra power to get the bus going again, and extra manpower. More stops are also tougher on bus transmissions and engines. That all adds up to wasted fuel and, of course, wasted tax money.
The public will have a chance to weigh in on the policy, which will be discussed at a public hearing on Wednesday night at Windham Town Hall. This is a policy that could show real cost savings, and be good for the environment. Show up, and voice your support.
This is a policy that has been brewing for years. Many drivers have complained about how buses seem to stop at every other house. They also complain that buses seem to criss-cross each other duplicating coverage. But no one has wanted to take on the issue and make kids walk a little farther to a combined bus stop. Simply put, parents have become accustomed to personalized bus service for their kids. That status quo is apparently changing. Fortunately, the Windham School Board is up to the challenge of changing bad habits as it attempts to change this policy. It’s time to hop on board.
-John Balentine, editor
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