ewelin
Feb 23, 2006, 03:03 PM
Got this, this morning and thought I'd share it all with you.
To All on the Alert List:
The Legislature's Joint Standing Committee on Agriculture, Conservation & Forestry will be holding a public hearing on LD-2015, "Resolve, Authorizing Certain Land Transactions by the Department of Conservation, Bureau of Parks & Lands" on Monday, February 27 at 9:30am at the Pine Tree Capital Room of the Augusta Civic Center. Your help is needed to testify or just to attend as a show of support and solidarity for traditional recreational uses.
This resolve is the enabling legislation that would allow the Dept. of Conservation to swap public lands in four counties to Gardner Land Company as part of the deal to acquire approximately 6,000 acres of land surrounding Katahdin Lake. The Katahdin Lake lands in turn would be deeded to Baxter State Park. As part of the deal traditional activities such as snowmobiling, hunting and trapping will be prohibited.
While the MSA is a strong advocate for land conservation, we have fought to maintain access for traditional uses on all public lands. At their monthly meeting on Feb. 21, the MSA directors voted unanimously to support this deal provided that access for traditional uses is maintained, and to oppose it if access for traditional uses is not allowed. While there are no groomed trails on the property, there are traditional snowmobile access trails to Katahdin Lake that have been used by local riders for a generation. I recently visited Katahdin Lake by snowmobile in a group that included Senator Paul Davis and Representative Herb Clark, both of whom have been strong advocates for traditional access.
We've been working hard on this issue already at the legislature and coordinating our efforts with the Sportsman's Alliance of Maine. George Smith and I have done several briefings for groups of legislators and more are planned.
This deal, which has been three years in the making, involves Gardner Land Company, The Trust for Public Land, Baxter Park Authority, Dept.of Conservation, and ultimately the Maine Legislature.
In a nutshell, here's how the $14 million deal works:
Approximately 6,000 acres of land around Katahdin Lake, which is adjacent to Baxter Park, will be purchased by the Dept. of Conservation. The Department in turn will purchase other forestlands for the Gardners. About 7,400 acres of state-owned land will also be transferred to them. The Dept. of Conservation will receive $5.5 million, which must be used to replace the swapped lands in the counties where they are located. An additional $1 million will cover expenses in the deal. The Trust for Public Land will raise all of the funding from private donors.
As most of you know, the area around Baxter Park has been in the center of access issues over the past several years. The Quimby purchases along the northeast boundary of the park have resulted in trail closures, expensive re-routes and risks to many of the small family-owner businesses in the region. To the south, the AMC purchase has resulted in the loss of 30 miles of club trails. Complaints from environmental groups led to a study group last year that looked at snowmobile usage on the park perimeter road. Those complaints we're proven to be unfounded, and no action was taken.
The transfer of state lands requires a 2/3rds vote of the Legislature, and we have found strong bipartisan support for maintaining traditional uses on the property - every vote will count on this legislation and your help is needed.
If you can't attend the hearing, please contact Committee members and your own legislators. Committee contact information can be found at:
http://janus.state.me.us/house/jt_com/acf.htm
If you would prefer to call, the message line for Senators is 1-800-423-6900 and for Representatives 1-800-423-2900.
Thanks in advance for your help and we'll keep you updated on our progress via future alerts.
Bob
To All on the Alert List:
The Legislature's Joint Standing Committee on Agriculture, Conservation & Forestry will be holding a public hearing on LD-2015, "Resolve, Authorizing Certain Land Transactions by the Department of Conservation, Bureau of Parks & Lands" on Monday, February 27 at 9:30am at the Pine Tree Capital Room of the Augusta Civic Center. Your help is needed to testify or just to attend as a show of support and solidarity for traditional recreational uses.
This resolve is the enabling legislation that would allow the Dept. of Conservation to swap public lands in four counties to Gardner Land Company as part of the deal to acquire approximately 6,000 acres of land surrounding Katahdin Lake. The Katahdin Lake lands in turn would be deeded to Baxter State Park. As part of the deal traditional activities such as snowmobiling, hunting and trapping will be prohibited.
While the MSA is a strong advocate for land conservation, we have fought to maintain access for traditional uses on all public lands. At their monthly meeting on Feb. 21, the MSA directors voted unanimously to support this deal provided that access for traditional uses is maintained, and to oppose it if access for traditional uses is not allowed. While there are no groomed trails on the property, there are traditional snowmobile access trails to Katahdin Lake that have been used by local riders for a generation. I recently visited Katahdin Lake by snowmobile in a group that included Senator Paul Davis and Representative Herb Clark, both of whom have been strong advocates for traditional access.
We've been working hard on this issue already at the legislature and coordinating our efforts with the Sportsman's Alliance of Maine. George Smith and I have done several briefings for groups of legislators and more are planned.
This deal, which has been three years in the making, involves Gardner Land Company, The Trust for Public Land, Baxter Park Authority, Dept.of Conservation, and ultimately the Maine Legislature.
In a nutshell, here's how the $14 million deal works:
Approximately 6,000 acres of land around Katahdin Lake, which is adjacent to Baxter Park, will be purchased by the Dept. of Conservation. The Department in turn will purchase other forestlands for the Gardners. About 7,400 acres of state-owned land will also be transferred to them. The Dept. of Conservation will receive $5.5 million, which must be used to replace the swapped lands in the counties where they are located. An additional $1 million will cover expenses in the deal. The Trust for Public Land will raise all of the funding from private donors.
As most of you know, the area around Baxter Park has been in the center of access issues over the past several years. The Quimby purchases along the northeast boundary of the park have resulted in trail closures, expensive re-routes and risks to many of the small family-owner businesses in the region. To the south, the AMC purchase has resulted in the loss of 30 miles of club trails. Complaints from environmental groups led to a study group last year that looked at snowmobile usage on the park perimeter road. Those complaints we're proven to be unfounded, and no action was taken.
The transfer of state lands requires a 2/3rds vote of the Legislature, and we have found strong bipartisan support for maintaining traditional uses on the property - every vote will count on this legislation and your help is needed.
If you can't attend the hearing, please contact Committee members and your own legislators. Committee contact information can be found at:
http://janus.state.me.us/house/jt_com/acf.htm
If you would prefer to call, the message line for Senators is 1-800-423-6900 and for Representatives 1-800-423-2900.
Thanks in advance for your help and we'll keep you updated on our progress via future alerts.
Bob