NRCM works to protect Maine’s natural areas and wild, undeveloped character, particularly in the North Woods. We support responsible land development and sustainable forest practices that protect sensitive ecosystems and wildlife. We work for increased public ownership of Maine lands, so future generations will know the Maine we love today.
Protection of Maine’s natural, remote areas was one of the issues for which NRCM was founded in 1959. More than 60 years later, much progress has been made but major threats to Maine’s land and water resources continue.
With our coalition partners, NRCM has won many significant victories over the years, from helping establish the Allagash Wilderness Waterway to passage of legislation limiting irresponsible clear cuts. But the challenges of protecting Maine’s treasured wildlands and the wildlife that depend upon them have never been greater, nor the need more urgent.
We worked to establish a National Monument just east of Baxter State Park and continue our work to push for Land for Maine’s Future funding to acquire public lands, watchdog Maine’s public lands and the Allagash Wilderness Waterway, stop the ill-conceived East-West Highway from being built, weigh-in when harmful development is proposed in Maine’s North Woods, and ensure that any timber harvesting laws and policies are as protective as possible.
More than one-third of the state has changed ownership in the past 20 years. Corporations that have no stake in our local communities are buying up hundreds of thousands of acres. Slicing and dicing these natural areas can destroy the character of Maine’s North Woods forever.
This loss would affect not only the people of Maine but also our wildlife. The region is home to moose, bear, deer, and dozens of bird species—Boreal Chickadee, Spruce Grouse, Pine Grosbeak, Cape May Warbler, Yellow-bellied Flycatcher—for which the North Woods are the southernmost limit of their breeding range. Maine’s North Woods also provide many recreational opportunities for Maine people. Unchecked development threatens access to undeveloped, wild forests, lakes, and rivers for hiking, canoeing, camping, hunting and fishing.
While development pressures and the loss of public access continue to intensify, NRCM remains a voice for balancing economic development in Maine’s North Woods with conservation.
We invite you to learn more about our work to protect Maine’s North Woods and other natural areas, and to support our vital work for generations to come.
Zinke’s Silence on the Monument Creates Uncertainty for Northern Maine
By Jim Dill, Special to the BDN Bangor Daily News op-ed If you visit Penobscot Avenue in Millinocket on a gorgeous autumn weekend this year, odds are you’ll see far more people than you may have seen a year ago. Cars are parked on the street and people are bustling about downtown. Most of the Read More
Mountain Biking Adventures Grow in KWW National Monument
By Aislinn Sarnacki, BDN Staff Bangor Daily News news story Just over a year old, the Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument is just starting to take shape. Its southern access road, the Katahdin Loop Road, has been improved for vehicle travel; a number of campsites are maintained regularly; and a couple of hiking trails Read More
NRCM Warns: Lawsuit Likely if Commercial Logging Permitted in National Monument
BY STAFF Mainebiz news story Lisa Pohlmann, executive director of the Natural Resources Council of Maine, served notice to the Trump administration that allowing “commercial logging” in the Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument would “almost certainly trigger a lawsuit.” Pohlmann’s warning is in response to a leaked report from Secretary of the Interior Ryan Read More
Leaked Recommendations for Maine Monument Met with Confusion
by Susan Sharon Maine Things Considered, Maine Public Supporters of Maine’s Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument say a leaked memo from Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to the White House is confusing and only creates more economic uncertainty in the region. Leaked to media outlets three weeks after it was supposed to be made public, Read More
NRCM Statement Regarding Secretary Zinke’s Recommendations for Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument
Statement by Lisa Pohlmann, Executive Director, Natural Resources Council of Maine “We have reviewed the leaked memorandum to the President from Secretary of Interior Ryan Zinke, but the implications of the report for Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument remain unclear. Without more details, we cannot yet judge whether these recommendations are acceptable and consistent Read More
New Law Bans Lead Fishing Tackle to Protect Loons
By The Associated Press Bangor Daily News news story A new Maine law bans lead fishing tackle in hopes of protecting loons. The Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife says keeping lead fishing weights out of Maine waters will better the birds’ survival and spur population growth across the Northeast. Ingesting lead fishing tackle is Read More
Researchers Find Summer Heat’s Lasting Longer in the Gulf of Maine
The warmer conditions endure two months longer than in the early 1980s, posing threats to the food chain and raising risks from more powerful hurricanes. by Colin Woodard, Staff Writer Portland Press Herald news story New scientific research has revealed that summer temperatures in the Gulf of Maine, the second fastest warming part of the Read More
Zinke’s Decision to Keep Maine Monument Worth Celebrating
By John Holyoke Bangor Daily News column After months of nervous hand-wringing, news began to trickle out of Washington, D.C., on Thursday that ought to make many supporters of Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument happy. The review of the monument by Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke is complete, and first indications, according to Read More
Interior Secretary Wants to Keep Maine’s Katahdin Woods & Waters National Monument
Ryan Zinke is not recommending the removal of any of the 27 monuments under review but said some could be changed. by Kevin Miller, Staff Writer Portland Press Herald news story AUGUSTA – Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke will not recommend elimination of Katahdin Woods and Waters or other national monuments in a report expected to Read More
Banner photo: Moose near Baxter State Park, by Gerard Monteux
