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.
Plum Creek Harvest Too Close to Rare Species of Wintergreen
By Diana Bowley, staff writer Bangor Daily News news story FRENCHTOWN TOWNSHIP, Maine — Plum Creek Timberland’s harvesting in 2009 of an area too close to a rare plant in the Frenchtown area of Piscataquis County is being investigated. The timber company advised the Forest Society of Maine on Monday that it had harvested within Read More
Plum Creek’s Apology for Timber Violations Leaves Critics Skeptical
by Susan Sharon MPBN radio news story For the second time in four years, the Plum Creek timber company has been assessed one of the largest penalties in Maine history for violations of the state’s Forest Practices Act. The company has apologized for three improper clearcuts in an area near Moosehead Lake that is now Read More
NRCM Testimony on LURC’s Comprehensive Land Use Plan
Good afternoon Sen. Nutting, Rep. Pieh and Members of the Committee. I am Matt Prindiville, Clean Production Project Director for the Natural Resources Council of Maine. Cathy Johnson, our North Woods Project Director, unfortunately, could not be here today as she is out of town. NRCM has been involved in the revision of LURC’s Comprehensive Read More
Joint Comments of NRCM, Maine Audubon, and AMC to LURC Regarding Expansion of Expedited Permitting Area
To: Commissioners, Maine Land Use Regulation Commission cc: Marcia Spencer-Famous, Catherine Carroll Dear LURC Commissioners: We have been following the Commission’s discussions around TransCanada’s rulemaking petition and are encouraged that the Commission recognizes that TransCanada’s petition to expand the expedited permitting area will set important precedents for how all future petitions are considered. We appreciate that Read More
NRCM Gives People’s Choice Award to West Bath Artist for North Woods Protection
NRCM news release Augusta, ME – Evelyn Dunphy of West Bath was chosen as the winner of the 2009 Natural Resources Council of Maine People’s Choice Award, for her work protecting Maine’s wilderness areas, particularly Katahdin Lake. NRCM’s People’s Choice Award is bestowed each year to an individual or group whose actions have made a Read More
NRCM Gives Award for Effort to Protect Moosehead
Augusta, ME – The Natural Resources Council of Maine (NRCM) has awarded Russell Pierce, Esq., of the Portland-based law firm of Norman, Hanson and DeTroy, a 2009 Environmental Award for his unwavering efforts for the protection of Moosehead Lake. The award is given each year by NRCM to an individual or group whose actions have Read More
NRCM Appeals Plum Creek Decision
News Release Today the Natural Resources Council of Maine (NRCM) filed with Maine Superior Court an appeal of the decision by Maine’s Land Use Regulation Commission (LURC) to approve Plum Creek’s development proposal for the Moosehead Lake region. After careful deliberation and extensive legal analysis, NRCM’s Board of Directors voted last week to authorize the Read More
NRCM Response to Plum Creek Decision
Brownie Carson, NRCM Executive Director “Today’s vote by the Land Use Regulation Commission approving Plum Creek’s massive development plan for Moosehead Lake is deeply unsettling.” “It is unsettling because it may result in a level of future development, traffic, and increased congestion in the Moosehead Lake region that will forever damage one of Maine’s most Read More
After Plum Creek: A Provocation
by Robert Kimber Down East magazine September 2009 Sometime this fall the Land Use Regulation Commission (LURC) is expected to hand down its approval of Plum Creek’s massive development plan for the Moosehead Lake region. Back in 2005, when Plum Creek first submitted its plan, a friend of mine predicted how this saga would unfold: Read More
Banner photo: Moose near Baxter State Park, by Gerard Monteux