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.
Irving Files Plan with Land Use Commission to Rezone 51,000 Acres Around Fish River Chain
by Don Eno, Reporter St. John Valley Times news story ST. JOHN VALLEY, Maine – More than 51,000 acres of land around the Fish River Chain of Lakes in the St. John Valley could be rezoned if the Maine Land Use Planning Commission approves a plan submitted Wednesday, Dec. 24, by J.D. Irving subsidiaries – Read More
Sale Preserves Public Access to Moosehead Lake Shoreline
The state buys a 2-mile stretch of property that includes a beach and sweeping mountain views. By Kevin Miller, Staff Writer Portland Press Herald news story The state of Maine has acquired roughly 2 miles of shoreline on the northern end of Moosehead Lake, preserving an undeveloped parcel in a remote area popular with paddlers, Read More
Penobscot Indian Nation Announces Support of Roxanne Quimby National Park Plan
By Nick Sambides Jr., BDN Staff Bangor Daily News news story INDIAN ISLAND, Maine — The Penobscot Indian Nation has endorsed a proposed 150,000-acre national park and recreation area, saying the parks would protect the Penobscot River and associated waterways much the way the tribe has “since time immemorial.” Nation President Kirk E. Francis called Read More
State Uses Federal Funds to Acquire and Protect 2 Miles of Moosehead Lake Shoreline
By Christopher Cousins, BDN Staff Bangor Daily News news story BANGOR, Maine — The state has acquired 81 acres of undeveloped land with 2 miles of shoreline on northern Moosehead Lake that will connect another state-owned parcel called the Seboomook Unit to the water. Known locally as Little W. Shoreline, the new parcel is accessible Read More
Plum Creek Lumber’s ‘Green’ Certification Challenged
A watchdog group files a complaint about the logging practices of one of the nation’s largest timber producers, which owns about 865,000 acres in Maine. By Jeff Barnard, The Associated Press Portland Press Herald news story GRANTS PASS, Ore. — A watchdog group is challenging the environmentally friendly “green lumber” certification for Plum Creek Timberlands, one of Read More
Maine’s Piping Plover Chicks Have Best Year in Decade
Nearly 100 of the endangered shorebirds survive and fly, possibly because of stepped-up monitoring and tighter protections on beaches. By Kevin Miller, Staff Writer Portland Press Herald news story Nearly 100 endangered piping plover chicks hatched and took flight on Maine beaches in 2014, more than any other year during the past decade, despite threats Read More
Remote Town Could Offer the Road to Recreation
Forty miles northeast of Millinocket, Patten pines to be the gateway into Katahdin Woods & Waters. By Tux Turkel, Staff Writer Portland Press Herald news story PATTEN — Think about the hub of the Katahdin region and Millinocket probably comes to mind. The down-on-its-luck, former paper mill town and its neighbor, East Millinocket, are ground Read More
Historic Trails Beckon New Users to Katahdin Area
Mountain bikers and other adventurers are discovering the travel corridors used for centuries by Indians. By Tux Turkel, Staff Writer Portland Press Herald news story TOWNSHIP 4, RANGE 8 — Travel corridors used for centuries by Indians and more recently loggers are being repurposed as recreation trails for mountain bikers, hikers, Nordic skiers and horseback Read More
Wild Ride on Maine River Highlights North Woods’ Potential
The East Branch of the Penobscot River runs through the new Katahdin Woods & Waters Recreation Area. By Tux Turkel, Staff Writer Portland Press Herald news story TOWNSHIP 5, RANGE 8 — Maps and guidebooks describe Stair Falls as a series of eight ledges that straddle the East Branch of the Penobscot River, just outside Read More
Banner photo: Moose near Baxter State Park, by Gerard Monteux
