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
Governor Paul LePage
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
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
Land for Maine’s Future Supporters Take LePage Fight to Sportsmen
The Land for Maine’s Future Coalition hopes to tap key constituency in effort to pressure governor to release voter approved bonds. By Steve Mistler, Staff Writer Portland Press Herald news story AUGUSTA –– Supporters of the Land for Maine’s Future program used the first regular day of the deer hunting season and the expiration of Read More
NRCM Blasts LePage Administration on Energy Efficiency Policies
By Mal Leary MPBN news story In what may be the opening skirmish in a long battle over the three-year budget for Efficiency Maine, the Natural Resources Council of Maine is accusing the LePage Administration of seeking to reduce funding for weatherization and for home heating system improvements. The LePage Administration says that is just Read More
Attorney General Mills Questions LePage Plan to Divert Timber Revenue
Gov. Paul LePage wants to harvest more timber on state-owned land to pay for a home heating assistance program, but he has angered others by linking the issue to the Land for Maine’s Future program. By Kevin Miller, Staff Writer Portland Press Herald news story AUGUSTA — Attorney General Janet Mills said a LePage administration Read More
Maine People Tell Governor: You’re Wrong!
By George Smith Bangor Daily News column It is time for the Governor to realize he isn’t going to get his wish of diverting funding away from Maine’s public lands, and do the right thing: release those Land for Maine’s Future Bonds. Maine people strongly agree on this, and an opinion issued yesterday by Janet Read More
My Walkabout at Dodge Point
Dodge Point Public Reserved Land is a 520-acre property located on the Damariscotta River in Newcastle, just a few miles south on the River Road from downtown Damariscotta. Previously an award-winning tree farm, the property was purchased by the State in 1989, with funds from Land for Maine’s Future bonds, and the Damariscotta River Association Read More
Public Lands About Much More Than Cutting Trees
By Jenn Burns Gray, Special to the BDN Bangor Daily News op-ed Over the past few months, the revenue generated from the timber harvest on Maine’s public lands has been in the spotlight. The Bangor Daily News published an editorial Sept. 25 that highlights the numerous problems with Gov. Paul LePage’s plan to increase timber Read More