In the March edition of The Maine Monitor Radio Hour, editor Kate Cough spoke to Maine Monitor environmental reporter Emmett Gartner and Maine Monitor religion, society and politics reporter Sean Scott.
This episode covered how tariffs have affected Maine’s loggers and sawmills, the debate over whether federal immigration agents can wear masks or otherwise conceal their identities and how that compares to rules for local police, and more.
In December, Gartner covered how almost every link of New England’s forest products supply chain was hit hard by a perfect storm of tariffs. In early February, Gartner reported on how duties on Canadian imports are driving up domestic sales at some Maine lumber companies such as Pleasant River Lumber in Enfield.
Not all members of the Maine lumber industry were as bullish on the tariffs as the owners of Pleasant River Lumber, though. An industry analyst and two other mill leaders told Gartner earlier this year that inflation and a sputtering housing market made it unclear whether the tariffs would have a positive or negative effect on business in the long run.
Gartner also talked about the outlook for six forest pests and diseases in Maine after a combination of deep freezes and control measures have knocked back some prominent Maine forest pests and diseases over the past couple of years.
Scott, meanwhile, spoke about his reporting with Maine Monitor reporter Kristian Moravec about law enforcement identification practices.
Immigration agents have come under fire in recent months for obscuring their faces with masks and not making it clear who they are and who they work for while detaining immigrants at record levels across the country. In Maine, law enforcement identification practices are largely guided by custom and individual department policies, not legal requirements.
He also talked about a Maine Monitor panel of faith-based community organizations he moderated in February that touched on how the panelists’ faiths influence their work, the uncertain funding landscape nonprofit organizations have faced in the past year and what they’re paying attention to in 2026.
During the event, panelists talked about the logistics of keeping food pantries stocked, how hard it can be to distribute perishable food quickly and ensuring people know where to go when they need different services.
You can listen to the episode here. Tune in to listen live the first Thursday of every month at 4 p.m. on WERU 89.9 FM.
