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.
Veto of Lake Protection Bill Threatens Maine’s Lakes
NRCM Statement by Advocacy Director Pete Didisheim “Governor LePage today vetoed a bill that would protect one of Maine’s most important natural resources, our 6,000 lakes and ponds that are cherished by Maine people and visitors who come to Maine from around the world. This veto is an insult to the thousands of Maine people Read More
Environmentalists, Energy Firms Spar Over LePage’s Bill to Increase Timber Harvest
By Mario Moretto, BDN Staff Bangor Daily News news story AUGUSTA, Maine — Environmentalists and energy companies are lining up on opposite sides of a bill by Gov. Paul LePage to increase the state’s timber harvest and use the new revenue to pay for residential energy efficiency programs. The plan would slowly increase the public Read More
NRCM Testimony in Opposition to LD 1838, An Act To Expand Affordable Heating Investments with Maine’s Public Resources
Good afternoon Senator Vitelli, Representative Dill, and members of the Committee. My name is Cathy Johnson. I am a resident of Alna. I am testifying today on behalf of NRCM’s 16,000 members and supporters in opposition to L.D. 1838. We oppose this legislation because it undermines the integrity of the public lands trust fund by Read More
LePage: Cut Down More Public Trees to Pay for Heating Efficiency Programs.
The governor said that heat pumps, not solar rebates, are key to the state’s energy future. By Matt Byrne, Staff Writer Portland Press Herald news story Gov. Paul LePage and officials at the state energy office announced plans Tuesday to increase logging on public lands and use the new revenue to help Mainers convert inefficient Read More
Plan to Use State Timber Money for Energy Rebates Under Attack
WGME news story AUGUSTA (WGME) — It’s one of Maine’s largest natural resources. Trees. And Governor Paul LePage wants to use Maine’s trees to lower your energy costs. The governor wants to increase commercial logging on state-owned public land, and use the additional money to help people convert to more efficient home heating systems. Governor Read More
State Plan to Increase Timber Harvesting on Public Lands Hits Resistance
By Christopher Cousins, BDN staff Bangor Daily News news story AUGUSTA, Maine — A plan within the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry to markedly increase timber harvesting limits on publicly owned lands has caused concern among environmentalists who say the increase is unsustainable. Department spokesman John Bott confirmed Monday that the department has internally Read More
Maine’s Public Forests at Risk from Increased Logging
Administration Plan Developed in Private NRCM news release Read full report. Reference documents for report. According to a new investigative report issued today by the Natural Resources Council of Maine, the LePage Administration over the past two years privately developed a plan to dramatically increase logging on Maine’s public lands without disclosing the plan to Read More
Skiing at Katahdin Woods and Waters: A Glorious Trip
Some friends and I headed to Patten and turned west toward the North Gate of Baxter State Park. We stopped at Matagamon Wilderness Store and Cabins, who, with Bowlin Camps, have been grooming 18 miles of trails along the East Branch on the Elliotsville Plantation land that I hope will become the next national park. Read More
State Plan Changes after Delay in Reporting Mercury in Lobster
Portland Press Herald news story by Scott Dolan, staff writer State Toxicologist Andrew Smith received an urgent message in 2011: A team of independent scientists had discovered dangerously high levels of mercury in black ducks in a marsh near the mouth of the Penobscot River. But what Smith didn’t know was that the same scientists Read More
Banner photo: Moose near Baxter State Park, by Gerard Monteux
