“BIG MOOSETAKE: Plum Creek’s Plans to Spoil Moosehead”
Augusta, Maine -Today, the Natural Resources Council of Maine released a two-minute, web-based “flash movie” designed to inform Maine people about the large developments proposed by Seattle-based Plum Creek Real Estate Investment Corporation in the Moosehead Lake region. View the movie, BIG MOOSETAKE: Plum Creek’s Plans to Spoil Moosehead, which was sent to thousands of households and will be sent to thousands more over the next few weeks.
In the two-minute animated movie, with loons calling in the background, Murray the moose and Chelsea the chickadee describe how Plum Creek’s proposed developments would harm the character of Maine’s North Woods forever, by scattering 30 subdivisions totaling 975 house lots, two resorts, a golf course, a marina, three RV parks and more than 100 rental cabins around beautiful Moosehead Lake. The 426,000 acres where Plum Creek has proposed their developments lie in the heart of the largest remaining undeveloped area in the United States east of the Mississippi River, the source of the region’s vital nature-based economy.
A recent public opinion survey by Portland-based Critical Insights found that by a 2:1 margin, Maine people believe that Plum Creek’s proposed development in the Moosehead Lake region is a “bad idea”. The survey was conducted in late October.
“We believe this movie is entirely in synch with the majority opinion of Maine people,” said Brownie Carson, executive director of the Natural Resources Council of Maine. “The Natural Resources Council of Maine, Greenville area residents, and people statewide are worried that Plum Creek’s plan, if approved, would forever damage the natural resources values of the region,” Carson added. The “flash movie” urges Maine people to join the effort to oppose Plum Creek’s proposal.
“We have told Plum Creek that they should go back to the drawing board and develop a new proposal that would focus new development within or next to the existing towns of Greenville and Rockwood, provide permanent protection and public access, and not send development sprawling across the Moosehead region,” said Carson.
Maine’s Land Use Regulation Commission is expected to hold public hearings on Plum Creek’s plans next year. “The Plum Creek plan is not a done deal. The future of Maine’s North Woods depends on Maine people sharing their concerns about this massive proposal. If you care about they type of Maine we leave for our children, then now is the time to become involved and speak out,” said Carson.
