NRCM calls on planning agency to drop proposed changes that would harm wildlife, recreation, and local economic development NRCM news release Augusta – People from across Maine, and the state’s leading environmental advocacy group are calling on the Land Use Planning Commission (LUPC) to drop a proposal that would allow widespread development on more than Read More
development
State Regulators Revise Restrictions on Development in Remote Areas
by Kate Cough Ellsworth American news story ELLSWORTH — The Land Use Planning Commission (LUPC) offered a revised draft of its “adjacency principle” rules in late November in response to public outcry over proposed changes that were introduced this summer. The LUPC, which manages land in Maine’s unorganized territories, has long used the adjacency principle Read More
Maine’s North Woods Threatened by State Policy
The Land Use Planning Commission would open millions of acres of fragile ecosystems to development. by Rebecca Tripp, a resident of Searsport Portland Press Herald op-ed Maine’s North Woods is the largest undeveloped forest in the Eastern U.S., and it is being threatened by a proposal put forth by the Land Use Planning Commission, which Read More
Proposal would Relax State’s Restrictions on Rural Subdivisions
Maine’s Land Use Planning Commission wants to allow development within 10 miles by public road of any rural ‘hub.’ by David Sharp, The Associated Press Portland Press Herald news story The agency overseeing development in Maine’s vast wilderness is considering dramatic changes that would alter restrictions on where subdivisions and businesses can be built. The Read More
Maine Environment Spring 2018 Newsletter
Maine Environment Spring 2018: What’s Inside! In this issue of Maine Environment, we feature an important story about big-picture implications of plastic waste, and why we need to shift away from the use of “convenience plastics.” It also highlights the work Sarah Lakeman, NRCM’s Sustainable Maine project director, is doing with local Maine towns to Read More
Patience Urged on Land Management Rule Changes
by Kate Cough Ellsworth American news story ELLSWORTH — New rules under consideration by the Maine Land Use Planning Commission (LUPC) could alter the way land in Maine’s unorganized territories, including Fletchers Landing Township and areas around Tunk Lake, is managed, if they are passed as is by the nine-member commission this fall. On June Read More
Public is Right: There’s No Reason to Change Unorganized Territory Development Rule
Bangor Daily News editorial A website devoted to changes that would allow more scattered development throughout Maine’s Unorganized Territories begins with this statement: “Development that is farther away from public services can lead to difficulty providing those services, and scattered development may interfere with forestry, recreation, and habitat. Right now, new zones for subdivisions and Read More
Land Use Planning Commission’s Proposed New “Adjacency” Rule has Few Backers. Will It Matter?
By John Holyoke, BDN Staff Bangor Daily News news story One by one, interested parties walked to to the microphone Wednesday afternoon, introduced themselves to the members of the Land Use Planning Commission, and told those commissioners why scrapping their one-mile “adjacency” principle was the wrong thing to do. One by one by one. After Read More
State Planners Should Tread Lightly on Rural Rule Changes
Doing away with Maine’s ‘one-mile rule’ could spur development in remote, pristine areas where it doesn’t belong. Portland Press Herald editorial State planning officials are proposing a change to the rules that have governed development in Maine’s unorganized territories for more than four decades. The plan raises many questions, with the most important a simple Read More
