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RUMFORD – For decades, Rumford served as a poster child for the nightmarish pollution that turned the Androscoggin River into a foaming, dye-filled mess with fumes so awful they peeled the paint off homes.
It’s not like that anymore.
These days, there are trout, bass and beavers enjoying clear water in Rumford that’s becoming attractive to kayakers and canoeists.
But there’s more to it than meets the eye.
Rumford officials, like many along the river, worry that some are in such a hurry to declare the river is in better shape that they might impose regulatory measures that could stifle existing businesses, push up the cost of upgrading sewage treatment plants and prevent new companies from coming to town.
Updated May 4
Upgrading the Androscoggin River under a new bill sparks debate, pushback from businesses
The bill would upgrade some sections of the Androscoggin River to a Class B, adding additional water protections for what was once one of the most polluted rivers in America. Environmentalists and recreationalists support the idea. Businesses that use it as a way to get rid of waste do not.
Andree Kehn/Sun Journal
State regulators threw cold water this week on a bid to upgrade the water quality classification of a portion of the Androscoggin River that includes Lewiston-Auburn.
Environmentalists, however, said they were still hopeful lawmakers in Augusta would press forward with a proposal to raise the standard.
ANDROSCOGGIN VALLEY â A bill before the Maine Legislature to upgrade the classification of a 12-mile section of the Androscoggin River in that state is strongly opposed by the new owners of the Gorham mill as well as the communities of Berlin and Gorham.
Submitted to the Maine Legislature in December, LD 676 calls for upgrading the section of the river from Gulf Island Dam near Lewiston-Auburn, Maine, to Merrymeeting Bay where it flows into the Atlantic Ocean.
Currently classified as a Class C, the bill seeks to upgrade that section to Class B.
Supporters of the bill said data shows the section already meets Class B standards 99 percent of the time. Upgrading the section would allow the entire river to be classified as Class B and would recognize the remarkable transformation of the river since it was considered one of the countryâs most polluted rivers.
Andree Kehn/Sun Journal
State regulators threw cold water this week on a bid to upgrade the water quality classification of a portion of the Androscoggin River that includes Lewiston-Auburn.
Environmentalists, however, said they were still hopeful lawmakers in Augusta would press forward with a proposal to raise the standard.
Legislators are eyeing a bill by state Sen. Ned Claxton, an Auburn Democrat, that seeks to upgrade the regulatory status of the river to Class B, a move that would add new environmental protection and higher standards for what can be discharged into the waterway.
State Sen. Ned Claxton, D-Auburn