Projects compete for $12M in conservation funds

Nearly three dozen conservation projects will compete for a share of $12 million available from the Land for Maine’s Future program, state officials announced Wednesday.

Nonprofit organizations, state agencies and several localities submitted requests totaling $22.6 million to LMF, which was created 20 years ago to protect critical undeveloped lands as well as farms and public access to water.

Voters overwhelmingly approved a $12 million bond package for the program last November. For the first time in LMF history, $2 million was set aside to support Maine’s working waterfronts. Another $1 million is earmarked for water access projects.

That leaves $9 million for the 33 land conservation and farmland projects submitted to the LMF board.

Tim Glidden, the LMF director in the State Planning Office, attributed the “bump” in interest this year to the fact that no money was available for new projects last year. Demand did not decrease during that time, he said.

“It’s clear there are a ton of good opportunities out there and the board will have some challenging decisions to make,” Glidden said Wednesday afternoon.

The requests cover more than 154,000 acres in 15 counties throughout the state. Nearly two-thirds of the projects aim to protect land in southern or coastal Maine.

Among the lands seeking to be protected are:

. 27,000 acres near the Machias River in townships 41, 42, 35 and 36. The state Department of Conservation hopes to purchase a conservation easement on the privately held land.

. More than 1,000 acres of the Caribou Bog in the areas of Hudson, Old Town and Orono. The Orono and Bangor Land Trusts hope to acquire the land.

. More than 4,200 acres in what is known as the Great Pond Mountain Wildland near Orland. The Great Pond Mountain Conservation Trust hopes to buy the land.

Board members consider a variety of factors when deciding which projects to fund, including the degree of public access to the land, whether it would complement existing conservation holdings, and the ecological value of the property.

The board is expected to announce the recipients of the conservation and farmland money on May 16.

To date, LMF has protected more than 240,000 acres in the state.