Stewards of land must act in Maine

I am writing in response to a letter published Feb. 29 in the Bangor Daily News, titled, “Maine Green Party.” The author first suggests that the Green Party’s proposed clear-cutting referendum would “seriously harm all forest product industries in northern Maine, putting a lot of them out of business and severely reducing the size of other operations in an area of the state where trees are the biggest natural resource.”

Let’s look at some realities: From 1970 to 1990 total employment in the forest products industry of the northern forest states fell by 13 percent (almost 17,000 jobs). At the current rate of nonsustainable clear-cutting forestry practices this trend is predicted to continue — despite a clear-cut referendum. (See “The Northern Forest Strategies for Sustainability,” by Spencer R. Phillips, The Wilderness Society, 1993.)

Clear-cutting is just one of the nonsustainable events in the northern forest. Another more devastating long-term problem associated with the forest products industry is dioxin pollution. Fish and lobster eaters beware — there are at least 75 different dioxins known to cause cancer and many are found in high concentrations in all waters below every one of the seven bleach kraft mills. Look at this figure: One paper company last year reported $240 million in profits. That is an amazing number of polluted lobsters, fish and shellfish for which they are responsible. The out-of-state stockholders are ecstatic, while the people of Maine and their freshwater and marine ecosystems have a serious pollution problem. The “closed-loop” technology to clean up the dioxins and other associated pollutants (and there are many) cost approximately $50-$60 million for a typical mill. That still leaves this one paper company a cool $180 million profit; a small price for these multi-national corporations to pay for a cancer-free nonpolluted environment. And that $50-$60 million is nothing compared to the long-term billions lost when our lobster markets are lost and the tourism dollars from sport fishing dry up. (Washington County already is feeling that blow to its “already fragile economy”.)

The forest products industry is pulling the wool over the eyes of all Mainers and has our legislators in their back pockets. They are raping this beautiful state of our natural resources and selling them abroad to their multi-national partners while publicly claiming that all is “well in the hands of a paper company.” Hogwash! The forest products industry must be responsible stewards of the lands they use and the public waterways into which they dump their non-profit waste. They must stop seeking high short-term returns by selling valuable land for development rather than keeping it for sustainable timber management. The urbanization of Maine must stop. We need sustainable forestry practices, we need wilderness areas and the people of Maine must demand them before it is too late.

The multinational forest product industries must be held accountable to the people of Maine for their collectibe actions because have a contract with the people of Maine and are allowed to operate here. Property rights do not extend to biological devastation of whole ecosystems and the pollution of our collective coastal waters. In light of these serious problems, I suggest, in conjunction with the clear-cutting referendum, that the people of Maine initiate a “dioxin referendum” which would require that the responsible parties clean up the rivers of dioxin by the year 2002, although even this is not soon enough (remember DDT, that legacy lives on). The dioxin issue is one of the most serious pollution issues we face in Maine.

Fish and lobster should not be eaten from any waters with bleach kraft mills on them. This has dire monetary consequences for the fishing industry in particular and the ecotourism industry in general. The lobster and shellfish industry could be destroyed if this issue is not dealt with soon. Talk about job loss and billions in lost revenue! All for $50-$60 million? Real stewards of the land would see the long-term benefits of making this very small investment for future Maine generations.

It has been approximately 100 years since the Industrial Revolution began. In the 1970s we started to understand how chemical pollutants caused cancer and today we are beginning to understand that these pollutants trigger molecular events which lead to uncontrolled cell growth (i.e., cancer). The forest products industries must use this scientific knowledge by implementing socially responsible practices within the industry. If the forest products industry does not care about our great state than it is up to groups like the Green Party and others dedicated to a viable future to propose referendums that do so.

Maine people must not look naively and narrow-mindedly at the future nor must we believe every word spoken by the leaders of the forest products industry. Together, we can create “viable alternative jobs at decent wages” with a diverse economy. Together, we can make Maine the envy of all Americans.

Michael J. Good operates Down East Nature Tours in Bar Harbor.