Maine Legacy : Fall 2000

4 T M ain e I e m c y Fall 2000 TheNatureConservancv m R Stepping Up ^ ^ St.The John Pace On River The JOSH ROYTE After four giant steps along the Upper St. John River The Nature Conservancy in Maine has set its sights on protecting the length of the river from its headwater ponds to Allagash - a full 130 miles. Step took place back in Decem- protected - thanks to a deal with another landowner in the water One her of 1998 and received J.M.Huber Corporation. Huber is trad shed, Dunn Timberlands. Through headlines nationwide as the Conser ing land and timber rights with the a complex purchase of ownership in vancy purchased 185,000 acres of Conservancy to extend our ownership terests in Dunn lands throughout remote forest surrounding 40 miles along the river - and topping off the the state and consolidation of those of the mighty St. John River. deal with a voluntary commitment to interests along the river, the Con place a township and a half in the wa servancy will gain partial ownership Step was announced this tershed off limits to development. along another 17 miles. TWO past July. The Con Through these two deals, the servancy announced that more for Step announced at the Conservancy could now point to 60 est land and river corridor will be T h ree same time, involved miles of river corridor on which it will hold full or partial ownership and a total of 225,000 acres to be owned or designated for no devel opment in the watershed. Step came this September Fou r and stretched corridor protection to over 75 miles as two large-scale conservation efforts con verged on the shores of the St. John. The Conservancy pledged $1.5 mil- 5 lion toward the The New England g Forestry Foundation’s Pingree For- 3 est Partnership’s efforts to raise Continued on page two In this issue zpping Up The Pace............ 7 -4 rest Referendum in Maine... 2-3 nnual Report fo r 2000...... insert ^ v 5 The Politics of Sustainable Forestry A recent study of biodiversity in OT Maine’s forests, conducted as part of the Maine Forest Biodiversity Project, ■ >? suggests that current forestry prac tices, whatever their other merits or F or the third time in five years, possibly be against that? faults (and there are plenty of both), Maine citizens are voting on a ref As it turns out, plenty of people. are not the primary threat to biodi erendum question about forestry Even Maine’s conservation commu versity in Maine. Clearly, some land practices. And once again we are left nity is divided about the wisdom of managers are doing a better job than to sift through overheated campaign the referendum, despite their com others addressing wildlife habitat con rhetoric for the truth about what this mon frustration at the Legislature’s cerns, but there is no doubt that bill might or might not mean for unwillingness to rein in even such working forest land provides better Maine’s forests, wildlife, landowners egregious forestry practices as liqui habitat for most wildlife species than and economy dation harvesting. alternative land uses such as agricul Supporters of Question 2 claim the The Conservancy’s mission in tural fields or houselots. bill is simply designed to ensure that Maine is focused on biodiversity con In fact, the study concluded that landowners who are enrolled in the servation and healthy, intact forests the primary biodiversity needs in Tree Growth tax program are har are critically important habitat for Maine forests are twofold: vesting their forests at a sustainable many wildlife species. But determin 1 ) restoring a portion of the land rate, so Maine’s forests will continue ing the likely effect of the proposed scape to old growth habitat; and to provide both jobs and wildlife habi referendum on biodiversity is more 2 ) protecting working forest land tat long into the future. Who could complicated than it first appears. from fragmentation and development. Giant Steps of the forests - placing conservation 16 miles of river (an area of 36,400 continued from page one reserves side by side with well-man acres) in which we have held a form aged forests - has struck a respon of partial ownership known as undi funds for a mammoth conservation sive chord with many. vided interest. These transactions in easement in Maine’s north woods. Sig In the process, we’ve proven once volve an exchange of land and timber nificantly, one-third of those lands lie again that cooperation works. We’ve rights. in the upper St. John River watershed. struck recent deals with J.M. Huber, Huber is also committed to donat Meanwhile, the Pingree family will Dunn Timberlands and the Pingree ing a conservation easement on eliminate commercial forestry opera family - and in every case the river 36,000 acres of land in the watershed tions and new roads in a 17-mile cor and the forests have come out the that will ensure that the area remains ridor along the upper St. John. All to winner. All three forest companies free of development. Huber, a diver gether, over half of the Upper St. John are family-owned businesses many sified multinational supplier of engi River watershed in the United States generations deep in Maine. The Hu neered materials, natural resources will now be protected through con ber family began its operations in and technology-based services, has servation ownership or easement. 1883, while both the Dunns and committed nearly $ 2 million in sup port of Conservancy projects in Step The boldness of vi- Pingrees have managed Maine forests Maine and elsewhere in recent years. ^t si°n that character- since 1840. “Our company, the Huber family Time 'ze<^ t*ie C on ser The deal with vancy’s initial pur J.M. and Huber employees at our Maine chase of 286 square miles of forest Huber J.M. Huber Cor locations in Easton, Old Town and along the upper St. John River con poration adds over two miles of river Millinocket want this river to be en tinues to guide this ambitious initia protection within a 6 ,0 0 0 -acre acqui joyed by all who love the wilds of tive. The north woods are vast - and sition. It also consolidates the Maine as we do,” says J.M. Huber our model for maintaining the health Conservancy’s fee ownership around President Peter Francis.“Wherever 2- Maine Legacy Fall 2000 Neither is directly addressed by Even defining sustainable cutting It features an article entitled the referendum, but both could be im levels is surprisingly difficult. While “Twenty Ways of Looking at Maine’s pacted indirectly. the referendum’s use of ten year Forestry Referendum,” a compila For instance, claims that the growth averages sounds reasonable to tion of short (and in most cases very referendum’s requirements would ac lay people, it has been denounced by thoughtful) essays by Maine land- tually encourage the fragmentation most forest ecologists as fundamen owners, environmental advocates, and development of southern Maine tally flawed and actually counterpro foresters, ecologists and academics. forests by driving small landowners ductive to good forest management. The full article is posted on the out of the Tree Growth tax program The language appears, for example, magazine’s website found at has emerged as a prime argument in to prohibit “banking” forest growth www.northernwoodlands.com (or the opponents’ television ad cam from one year to the next - a basic call our office for a copy). paign. There is enough concern about principle of forest management, es Foresters argue that trying to this possibility that some referendum pecially on small woodlots. regulate good forestry is exception supporters have proposed exempting Yet, in the absence of new stan ally difficult, and ill conceived at all landowners of less than 1 ,0 0 0 dards, the trend lines in northern tempts to do so may well create acres from the law’s requirements. Maine still point toward younger and more problems than they fix. But But would legislators really exempt less diverse forests on at least some unless forest landowners and policy 97% of the landowners (and 14% of large ownerships. So what is a respon makers take the lead in addressing the affected forest acreage) from a law sible citizen to do? legitimate public concerns, we can the voters have just approved? If pas For those who want to cast an in assume that this referendum won’t sage of the referendum did cause formed vote on the upcoming refer be the last on forest management small forest landowners to leave the endum, I recommend the autumn is issues in Maine. Tree Growth tax program, or discour sue of Northern Woodlands magazine. aged others from joining it, many im portant natural areas in southern and coastal Maine could be put at risk. we do business, our strong commit ment to the environment follows.” In Maine, Huber has donated 4,100-acre Crystal Bog Preserve in southern Aroostook; 265-acre Marble Fen Preserve and 714-acre Seboeis River Gorge Preserve, both in north ern Penobscot County. Dunn The Dunn Timberlands deal requires a series of complex steps, each de pendant on the cooperation and good will of the Dunn family. Robert Saw yer IV is the sixth generation to lead the family business and was a mem ber of the committee which drew up Conservancy lands along the St. John River the resource protection plan which has guided timber operations along protect this river.” Pingree The recent a- the upper St.

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