FALL 2018 THE NEWSLETTER OF RIVERS Making Way For Alewives: Lombard Removal A wooden effigy of Kaiser Alewife restoration efforts in Wilhelm II held a hosepipe to the Sebasticook watershed have feed the decorative water wheel, been extraordinarily successful, spinning aimlessly, next to the with well more than 3 million Lombard Dam. It poked fun at fish moving through the Benton the German emperor, king of Falls fishway this year. Known Prussia and autocrat who enjoyed as the “fish that feed all” alewives being known as “Supreme War are a keystone species, critical Lord.” It was July 4,1918. The in freshwater and saltwater old photo in the Vassalboro ecosystems. The removal of the Historical Society notes, “ has a life job for Fort Halifax and Edwards opened up access to the Kaiser Billy.” The water wheel and the wooden effigy of highly productive lake and pond habitat for migratory Kaiser Billy with the pipe are long gone. Another image species. Alewives feed many species of birds, including eagles from the same era shows a barn, which no longer exists and and osprey, numerous other fish species, bear, raccoons, the old ice house, also long gone. This summer, as part of foxes, whales, haddock and cod. the Alewife Restoration Initiative, the Lombard dam itself The Lombard dam removal is part of the Alewife Restoration was deconstructed. A brick power house built on site will Initiative, coordinated by Maine Rivers with many remain, as will a gate house that was built directly on the partnering groups. The goal of the initiative is to restore an dam sometime after Kaiser Billy’s time. The dam removal annual run of nearly one million returning adult alewives is part of a larger project to bring back historic native fish making their way from the ocean to spawn in China Lake. species that have been missing from Outlet Stream since To prepare for the Lombard dam removal, researchers colonial times—alewives. documented the current condition of the dam and A.O. Lombard’s connection to Vassalboro. The project has required permits and approval from the Maine Department of Environmental Protection, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Maine Historic Preservation Commission. Alvin O. Lombard was an inventor whose log hauler revolutionized forestry work and was later adapted for military uses. With no formal education, Lombard was from early youth an exceptionally creative engineer, first Lombard Dam demolition using water power for a miniature mill to cut cucumbers. continued on page 3 www.mainerivers.org 1 Maine Rivers Urges Mainers to VOTE LIKE A STURGEON WOULD Maine Rivers urges you to VOTE LIKE A STURGEON clean water WOULD! Are we serious? Actually we are. Midterm Sturgeon would vote for candidates who will protect th elections are coming up on Tuesday, November 6 and will clean water, from headwaters all the way downstream to be a critical time for voters to come out and make good the ocean. At issue now are interpretations of the Clean choices. We can’t tell you which candidates to vote for but we Water Act, and some argue that headwater streams are not can tell that your vote matters. And sturgeon matter to us. important enough to protect. We disagree. Maine has two species of sturgeon, Atlantic sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrinchus) and shortnose sturgeon (Acipenser endangered species act There are efforts underway to weaken the Endangered brevirostrum). They’ve been around since the dinosaurs, Species Act, a law that has been critical for bringing Maine’s their evolution dates back to the Triassic period, some 245 bald eagle populations back from the brink of extinction. to 208 million years ago. They are considered a “primitive” It provides protections for sturgeon and should not be fish because they have not changed much since those weakened or dismantled. ancient times. They have rows of bony, armor-like plates on their sides and a skeleton of cartilage rather than free flowing rivers and streams bones. Historically, Atlantic sturgeon ranged along the Healthy rivers without dams are better for sturgeon. Free Canadian and U.S. Atlantic Coast from Labrador to Florida. flowing water is better oxygenated and offers better habitat Both Atlantic sturgeon and shortnose sturgeon are now for spawning. Maine has too many deadbeat dams that endangered in Maine. Their future existence on this planet no longer serve any purpose but still block access to good depends on decisions we make—as on November 6th. habitat and degrade our water. Sturgeon would tell you Like alewives and , sturgeon are migratory— to support candidates that understand the importance of they are born in freshwater, then migrate to the sea and back healthy rivers and will support removing obsolete dams. again to freshwater to spawn. Most young sturgeon remain climate change in their birth river for several months before migrating out We know that the Gulf of Maine is one of the fastest to the ocean. warming bodies of water on the planet. Changing Atlantic sturgeon are big—they can grow to be 18 feet long, temperatures, increased storm events, more invasive weigh 800 lbs. and have a lifespan similar to ours. Shortnose species—all of this makes life harder for sturgeon. We think sturgeon are much smaller, often no more than 3 feet long. sturgeon would make sure to vote for candidates who will support clean energy policies, scientific research and smart Sturgeon can’t vote but they can leap. And they do. With the planning to reduce impacts to our land and water. removal of the in Augusta, the now has some of the best habitat for sturgeon in Maine. It’s amazing but not unusual to see sturgeon leaping from the water quality It matters to long-lived species like sturgeon. We know Kennebec as it flows through Hallowell. Is it for courtship? they benefit from reducing pollution that makes its way For communication? There’s a lot we don’t know about to our waters. Microplastics. Plastic garbage. Stormwater sturgeon but we love to see them leap. runoff. Endocrine disruptors. Runoff from fertilizers and How would a sturgeon vote? The most significant threats pesticides. Sturgeon would look for candidates at every level facing Atlantic sturgeon are dams that block access to spawning of government who will act to protect clean water. areas, bad water quality, dredging of their spawning areas, Thank you to Patagonia for displaying this message in their winding up as fishing by-catch or being struck by vessels. Freeport new store window!

Image of Atlantic sturgeon via Duane Raver/U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 2 www.mainerivers.org Lombard continued from page 1 Patience + He also adapted a water wheel to churn butter. It was in his retirement that Lombard purchased property in Vassalboro, Persistence with room for his tinkering projects and a power source for experiments with water power. That power source was Notes from Outlet Stream. President Chuck Verrill The Vassalboro residence was a summer home, none of his Fly-fishing has been a passion of mine ever since I work there during the 15 years he owned it is known to have used paper route earnings to buy a very rudimentary resulted in any inventions or patents. fly rod and learned to catch sea run brookies and eels in Trout Brook that runs by the former high Lombard kept busy at his Vassalboro home. He rebuilt the school in South Portland. Now, many years later, I existing dam in concrete and added the brick power house am privileged to use my training as a lawyer in the that served as a machine shop. Researchers were not able to service of river restoration efforts throughout the determine how Lombard used the modest amount of power State from the Mousam to the St. Croix. Like fishing, that was generated by the dam, but some believe that enough these efforts require patience and perseverance and power was generated to power Christmas lights. the participation of many dedicated people and By 1869, decades before Lombard purchased property in organizations who pitch in to meet the goal of clean, Vassalboro, the seven miles of Outlet Stream had nine dams, unencumbered rivers and streams in Maine, many of with sites for four more. The dams provided power to the which have been, sadly, depleted by dams, pollution East Vassalboro Saw Mill and Grist Mill, a shingle mill, iron, and neglect. But patience and persistence do pay off wood and machine shop, and a grist and woolen mill. While with successes like the removal of the Fort Halifax dam the power of the stream allowed various industries to flourish, on the Sebasticook River that now hosts an annual they did not allow the natural life of the stream to persist. migration of alewives that number in the millions. Now, as all those industries have closed, the opportunity to Unfortunately, the Kennebec River, above its junction restore the ecological health of the stream can be realized. with the Sebasticook, is still blocked by dams. However, Funding and support for the Lombard Dam removal and Federal regulatory proceedings are now underway stream restoration work has been provided by the MNRCP regarding four of those dams with active participation program and the Maine Outdoor Heritage Fund, as well as by Maine Rivers and other organizations who hope that the Elmina B. Sewall Foundation, the Davis Foundation, their patient and persistent efforts will contribute to the Maine Department of Marine Resources, Town of Benton, further restoration of the entire Kennebec watershed. Town of Vassalboro, Town of China, China Region Lakes We appreciate your support of Maine Rivers and rely on Alliance, China Lake Association, Sebasticook Regional your generosity to sustain our work. Land Trust, The Nature Conservancy in Maine, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service the Natural Resource Conservation MAINE RIVERS Service and Patagonia. BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND STAFF

More Advocacy Chuck Verrill, President Dave Courtemanch Over the past year we’ve worked on advocacy for Curtis Bohlen, Treasurer Greg D’Augustine healthy rivers with functional fish passage: Jeff Reardon, Secretary Dan Gayer • Lower Mousam River Hydroelectric Project John Banks Rick Lawrence • Mainstem Kennebec River dams Nick Bennett Sharri Venno • Old Sparhawk Mill in the Royal River Landis Hudson, Executive Director • Saccarappa Dam in the Presumpscot River Matt Streeter, Alewife Restoration Initiative Manager

www.mainerivers.org 3 Non-Profit Org. Maine Rivers U.S. Postage Paid PO Box 782 Permit No. 477 Yarmouth, ME 04096 Portland, ME www.mainerivers.org 04103 [email protected]

In this issue -

Vote Like a Sturgeon Would! page 2

THANK YOU to ADVOCATES, FRIENDS and PARTNERS

Jen Deraspe whose 13 day solo Atlantic Salmon Federation for Androscoggin paddle raised more their successful work to remove the than $5,000 for Maine Rivers and Coopers Mills Dam toward restoring brought attention to her home river. Atlantic salmon, sturgeon and other sea-run fish.

Schoodic Riverkeepers Downeast Salmon Federation for who call for better fishways for Union River advocacy St Croix alewives: Paul Bisulca, Maine Indigenous leader calls Another fish kill near Brookfield for Canada to be tougher in fish Management dam worries biologist passage fight

Royal River Conservation Trust Directors who stand “firmly for the restoration of the Royal River to a free- running stream by removal of both the Bridge Street dam and the East Elm Street dam in Yarmouth and offers its support to the Town of Yarmouth and others to work deliberately towards that goal…”