Citing constitutional restrictions, the commission spurns the governor’s idea to fund the home heating program with income from expanded logging on public lands. By Kevin Miller, Staff Writer Portland Press Herald news story AUGUSTA — A task force has recommended against using revenues from logging on state-owned lands to help low-income Mainers heat their homes, Read More
Land for Maine's Future & Conservation
Legislature’s Public Lands Commission Slams Forest Door on Governor’s Demands
By George Smith Bangor Daily News column A special Commission organized by the legislature to respond to Governor Paul LePage’s demands that money be diverted from the Public Lands Bureau to fund heating assistance has unanimously rejected those demands, effectively shutting the forest door on the Governor. But the Commission did vote to divert some surplus Read More
Money for Maine Goes Elsewhere When Land Conservation Projects Stall
By The BDN Editorial Board Bangor Daily News editorial With little explanation, the LePage administration has decided not to pursue federal conservation money the state has used for decades to maintain working forestland while ensuring public recreational access. This move comes after Gov. Paul LePage earlier this year essentially shut down the state’s Land for Read More
Forecaster Forum: The Importance of Land for Maine’s Future
By Reps. Jennifer DeChant and Jay McCreight The Forecaster op-ed Maine has many positive attributes that make this state a wonderful place to live. One of those attributes, public access to the beautiful land that surrounds us, is something we often take for granted. We sometimes forget that good public policy promoted conservation in Maine Read More
Shame on Maine for Turning Its Back on Conservation
By George Smith Bangor Daily News column My first reaction was sadness. Later, I was ashamed, for our Governor, our state, and ourselves. When the LePage Administration refused to submit any conservation projects to the federal Forest Legacy Program for funding, for the first time in 15 years, we turned our back on a legacy Read More
LePage’s Strange Grudge Puts Working Forest at Risk
Instead of accepting federal funds to conserve land, Maine will take its chances this year. By The Editorial Board Portland Press Herald editorial The projects that have protected some of Maine’s most cherished areas are the result of complex work that can take years. The one assurance through long negotiations and tedious legal work is that, Read More
Maine Skips Applying for Federal Funds to Conserve Forestland
The state says its decision not to pursue project money for the first time in at least 15 years has nothing to do with Gov. Paul LePage’s criticism of land preservation. By Kevin Miller, Staff Writer Portland Press Herald news story For the first time in at least 15 years, Maine will not compete for Read More
$6.5 Million in Conservation Bonds, Held Up by LePage, Officially Expire
By A.J. Higgins MPBN news story AUGUSTA, Maine — As Maine hunters take to the woods on the first regular day of deer season Monday, many are finding access to traditional hunting grounds blocked by landowners who are posting their property. Ironically, this is also the day that nearly $6.5 million in voter-approved Land for Read More
LePage’s Land Conservation Interference Solidified Support against Him
By Jeff McCabe, Special to the BDN Bangor Daily News op-ed I want to publicly thank Gov. Paul LePage for single-handedly raising the profile of Land for Maine’s Future. If he didn’t keep holding hostage its voter-approved bonds, there wouldn’t have been an occasion to look into just how much Mainers support this conservation program. Read More
