What isn't happening tomorrow?

-- From 11 a.m.-1 p.m., the Local Sprouts Community Kitchen will host an open house in its new Public Market House digs.  

-- At 2 p.m., outside of the Kennebunk Water District office, a coalition of water-rights activists will hold a rally and press conference to protest the proposed Nestle contract there.

-- Portland's new (and so-far, successful) White Bikes collective will hold a "next-steps" meeting from 5:30-6:45 at the Dwell Creative office on Fore Street.  

-- The Joint Use Planning Committee that's come under fire for its handling of the Sears Island issue will hold a public meeting at the Hutchinson Center Auditorium in Belfast at 7 p.m.

The truly industrius could conceivably attend all of these...But we'd recommend prioritizing.

In front of a youngish crowd dressed as lobsters, Environment Maine and several public officials (including city councilors Jim Cohen and Nick Mavodones, and David Littell, the state's environmental commissioner) touted a new report this morning, full of practical ways to curb global warming. The report, "Global Warming Solutions That Work: Cutting-Edge Efforts to Curb Global Warming Pollution and the Lessons They Hold for America," includes case studies of successful strategies worldwide, such as transit-oriented development in Arlington, Virginia; pro-bike programs in Portland, Oregon; development of the renewable-energy industry in Spain; and widespread implementation of solar water heaters in Israel. The report is more than a pro-environment screed -- it's a road map for states and municipalities who want to get greener. 

New site, created to call out "projects that obviously were not vetted by the Maine Sensible Transportation Act...[which was] created to keep MDOT from completely paving over Maine, after Mainers were worn down and relented to allow the widening of Rt 95 south of Portland," according to an email sent out by webmaster Tim Sullivan.  

US Senator Susan Collins, who is running for re-election this fall, voted today to continue massive subsidies for oil corporations, and in opposition to taxing those companies' windfall profits. The vote was technically on a measure to end debate and proceed to a vote on the matter, but her vote to keep debate going ensured there would be no up-or-down vote on the proposal, which would have taken $17 billion in tax breaks over the next 10 years away from oil companies and given it to renewable-energy firms. (See the roll call tally and more info on the bill on the Senate's Web site, here.)

US Senator Olympia Snowe voted to end debate; that vote does not signify her stance on the bill itself. But because the bill may now never come to the floor, we won't know what she would have done.

In the US House, Representative Tom Allen (who is hoping he'll defeat Tom Ledue today and be able to challenge Collins for her seat) voted for the bill, as did Representative Mike Michaud.

Hey, all you Hillary supporters in Maine --- don't just toss that Clinton for President sign, recycle it! One Texas based company wants you to mail in your (now-useless) Hillary signs; they'll give you a free Barack Obama placard in return. (Via TMB.) 

There are plenty of interesting things to do here in Portland to observe National Trails Day tomorrow, including hiking 10 miles through the Forest City on a guided walk with Portland Trails.

But really the big thing you should do, if in any way you can, is to head up to near Greenville to walk among some of the oldest trees in Maine. We told you about these 200-plus-year-old trees -- and about Plum Creek Timber Company's plans to cut them down this summer -- last month, in an article by Bridget Huber. Now's your chance to go with the Native Forest Network and see them for yourself.

Meet at the Monson General Store in Monson (get directions here) at 11 am on Saturday, June 7. Bring water, a snack, and sturdy shoes that are OK getting wet.

There are plenty of interesting things to do here in Portland to observe National Trails Day tomorrow, including hiking 10 miles through the Forest City on a guided walk with Portland Trails.

But really the big thing you should do, if in any way you can, is to head up to near Greenville to walk among some of the oldest trees in Maine. We told you about these 200-plus-year-old trees -- and about Plum Creek Timber Company's plans to cut them down this summer -- last month, in an article by Bridget Huber. Now's your chance to go with the Native Forest Network and see them for yourself.

Meet at the Monson General Store in Monson (get directions here) at 11 am on Saturday, June 7. Bring water, a snack, and sturdy shoes that are OK getting wet.

In April, I suggested that Portland look into starting a bike-share program like the one recently launched in Washington, DC. And like magic, it's happening! (To be fair, I think the idea was on the radar long before I stuck my nose into the matter.)

Starting on Monday, June 9, Portlanders will be able to unlock white bikes around the city (using the White Bike code, which you can find at the group's website), ride them -- for free -- and then relock them for the next user.

"If you see a white bike, pick it up and ride it," organizer John Rooks, president of Dwell Creative, wrote in a press release. "The purpose of the White Bike initiative is to provide an alternate means of transportation and create an opportunity for the community to learn more about the facts and talk about the issues. People will be able to use the bikes as frequently as they need. When they reach their destination, they’ll leave the bike locked, waiting for its next occupant to unlock it with the universal code. One bike could have as many as 10-15 riders a day."

(Full disclosure: Apparently [I learned this from the press release] the Phoenix is a media sponsor of this initiative.) 

-- Deirdre Fulton 

Some of the fiddleheads around are actually starting to open, but there are still plenty to be found. It's a great wild, local, organic food. Pickled fiddleheads are my faves, but boiled and steamed are OK. (If they have to be hot, I'll take steamed, thank you.)

Here are a couple places you can get recipes on preparing fiddleheads: The Heart of New England, and Wild Harvest Gourmet.

The state government has put out some advisory info on how to keep safe when eating them - they boil down to washing what you pick, and either boiling them for 10 minutes or steaming them for 20 minutes.

One point health officials make is that floodwaters - especially in the St. John River valley - may have deposited contaminants where fiddleheads are growing.

You can find out a lot more about fiddleheads from the UMaine Cooperative Extension, and the Maine Center for Disease Control says you can call them at 800.821.5821 if you think you have gotten sick from eating fiddleheads. 

The well-known environmental Web site Grist.org has crowned Maine's College of the Atlantic, located in Bar Harbor, the greenest college or university in the world. COA held the first-known zero-waste graduation in 2005, according to a press release sent out by the school.

Here's the accolade from Grist:

"College of the Atlantic
This small school in Bar Harbor, Maine, has just one major: human ecology -- or "the study of our relationship with our environment." So it only makes sense that it was the first college in the U.S. to pledge carbon neutrality. And it kicked off quite a trend: Now more than 270 other U.S. colleges and universities -- including many of the following -- have pledged to do the same as part of the American College & University Presidents Climate Commitment."

What's more, New England schools in general made a great showing on Grist's list of the 15 top eco-friendly schools. Vermont is represented by Middlebury and Green Mountain College, and Connecticut by Yale; Massachusetts boasts two of its elite Cambridge institutions -- Tufts and Harvard -- and New Hampshire's UNH got a runners-up nod.

Late last week, the US Senate passed its version of a federal energy bill, which included crucial increases in the nation’s fuel-efficiency standards (although one wonders whether 10 miles per gallon over the next 10 years is really the fastest progress we can make).

Tucked into the bill is a $60 billion allocation for ‘abrupt climate change’ – and according to the Portland Press Herald, “the University of Maine…is involved in that research.”

We dug a little deeper to find out: a) what abrupt climate change is, and b) how UMaine is involved.

Turns out the Climate Change Institute, housed at the Orono campus, is involved in cutting-edge climate change research, studying glacial deposits and ice cores for what they can tell us about the atmosphere, weather patterns, and climate history.

What they’ve found, in Antarctica, New Zealand, Greenland, and the Arctic (among other locations), is a history of “abrupt climate change events…that coincide with major changes in civilization,” says Institute director Paul Andrew Mayewski, who studies ice cores.

What kinds of major changes? Oh, just the collapse of Mesopotamia, the Mayan Empire, and the Norse colonies.

“When they occur, they’re very dramatic and long lasting,” he says. And when they’ve happened, it’s because of a dramatic increase in one of the things that controls climate (i.e. the composition of the atmosphere). In other words, right now, as humankind increases the amount of greenhouse gases in the air, “we’re potentially setting ourselves up for abrupt climate change. Whether or not we can actually offset what’s happening, we still need to understand it.”

Several institutions will compete for their share of the $60 million. With their chunk, the Climate Change Institute researchers hope simply to reach as many places as they can -- after all, their specimens are melting, Mayewski points out. “There’s great immediacy in collecting records before they begin to disappear.”