Nobleboro citizens will be asked to decide whether the town should regulate the use of consumer fireworks, when they go to the polls in the Nov. 6 election.
At a Sept. 19 public meeting to discuss the matter, more than two-thirds of the approximately 25 Nobleboro residents present told the board of selectmen that they want some sort of local control to minimize the impact of fireworks.
Chairman Dick Spear said he had spoken with Lincoln County Sheriff Todd Brackett, who told Spear there were only two calls from Nobleboro to his department complaining of fireworks violations.
Marty Welt said he represented a group of residents who have been meeting since the board’s June 20 meeting, when the issue was first discussed.
Welt said a letter was sent to the board, asking them to appoint a committee to study the matter. When selectmen said they did not want to do that, Welt’s group formed their own ad hoc committee to consider ideas for an ordinance that would be stricter than the state’s rules.
They talked to their neighbors around Nobleboro to gauge public opinion and did research to learn what other towns were doing.
Welt said his committee had drafted language that selectmen might wish to use in a fireworks ordinance.
Selectman Deb Wilson said she wanted to hear from others in the room, to find out what they had experienced during the first summer after Maine legalized the possession and use of consumer fireworks.
Mary McGee said fireworks have been an issue in previous summers and that those using them have continued to ignore the time restrictions now in place.
Under the state law passed in 2011, owning and using fireworks are legal in Maine with some exceptions.
Fireworks have been broken into three categories: consumer fireworks, fireworks and display or commercial grade fireworks.
Consumer fireworks are only products that are tested and certified by a third-party testing laboratory as conforming with United States Consumer Product Safety Commission standards and do not include missile-type rockets, helicopters and aerial spinners, and sky rockets and bottle rockets, as defined by the State Fire Marshal.
The latter two categories of fireworks and display or commercial grade fireworks are subject to further state regulation.
Municipalities may put in place regulations more strict than those outlined in state law.
For more information on consumer fireworks in Maine can be found at the website at maine.gov/dps/fmo/inspections/fireworks.
Many residents at the Nobleboro meeting said they did not call 911 because the county cannot enforce an ordinance that does not exist.
Even when fireworks are being used outside of the allowed hours, by the time the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office responds to a call, the event may have passed. They said it can be difficult to tell where the violation is occurring, especially when it takes place along the lakeshore, where sound can travel long distances over the water.
Duayne Lowe pointed out that fireworks are prohibited in Damariscotta Lake State Park.
“What the dickens is the difference between us and the rest of Damariscotta Lake?” he said. He said there should be no difference between the regulation of fireworks noise and that of any other disturbance such as loud music late at night.
“I’m getting shot at from all angles,” Heidi Leinonen said. She said that between the sounds of hunters practicing their marksmanship and the added noise of fireworks, “unsettling is too mild a word. “
Leinonen said Duck Puddle Campground sets fireworks off Thursday through Monday.
“I’m not getting any sleep.” she said. “I strongly resent that some people, for their own enjoyment, are disrupting my sleep.” She said the events lasted until 11 p.m. or later.
Sarah Houghton lives on Center Street. She said noise and smoke from Duckpuddle have come in her windows almost every night this summer.
“It seems like [in] our quiet little town…it’s Fourth of July every night.” Houghton said. She said she has not seen deer where they usually are. Others at the meeting reiterated that concern.
Spear said he was concerned about fire danger.
“The state screwed up by not putting that in the legislation,” Spear said. He said Sen. Chris Johnson plans to introduce changes to the law to call for restrictions against the use of fireworks on certain fire class days.
Frank Cunningham said he has no complaint about fireworks issues, and that he has not heard any noise from fireworks since July 4. Cunningham said any ban should include Camp Kieve and other professional displays.
Shoshana Zuboff said she has heard fireworks at all hours.
“I would be sitting outside with my coffee at 8 or 9 in the morning and there would be fireworks,” she said. “We’d be sitting at dinner at 7 o’clock and there would be fireworks. We’d be watching a movie with the kids at 9 or 10 o’clock and there would be fireworks. It’s almost every day.”
She said there was no point in the current legal framework, in calling LCSO. “I feel guilty calling the sheriff,” she said. Zuboff said she does not want to send deputies in a wild goose chase, looking through the woods for those who are violating the law.
Clete Baltus said he lives about one-quarter mile from Duckpuddle Campground and has not smelled any smoke. He said he heard some fireworks this summer, “but it wasn’t bad at all.”
Nate Chapnick said another consequence of the legal use of fireworks is a large amount of debris that is washing up on the shore of Damariscotta Lake. He said he also finds debris floating in places where he fishes.
“It’s disturbing for those who come to Maine because they love nature,” Chapnick said.
“In hunting season, people don’t blast guns for 1½ hours,” Lowe said. He said hunters need to have licenses and do not increase the risk of fire with their activity.
“We’ve all had our experiences with them and it’s not all good,” Spear said.
He said the board wanted to gauge public sentiment on the issue before going through the time and expense of drafting an ordinance. Spear said the upcoming Presidential election would bring a large turnout to the polls, providing an opportunity for Nobleboro citizens to give their opinion.
The question to be put before voters has not been finalized, but Spear said it would ask if they want the town to create an ordinance regulating the use of consumer fireworks. Final language will be agreed on at the board’s next meeting on Wed., Sept. 26.
For more information about the upcoming election ballot, call the Nobleboro Town Office at 563-8816.
