Incentives for sharing Maine wilderness

Between the Brookings report and numerous other studies, the trend in state land ownership is clear. Any Mainer who has owned a camp on a lake for any period of time has watched the shift. New camp and woodland owners are called “out-of-staters,” and, yes, many do reside outside our borders. But many were born here, sought opportunity outside Maine, and then for whatever reasons decided they wanted to acquire property back in this beautiful state.

I can appreciate their hunger for a piece of Maine. We have a beautiful state. But as residents we should be concerned that many of these folks are not insulated from slumping home values, overextended loans, upside-down vehicle loans, skyrocketing energy prices, and other economic woes.

What happens if they stop coming to Maine?

Will posted lands become overgrown and disease ridden because of overpopulation? Will a percentage of camps on lakes begin to fall apart and shorefront values decline? Will resident sportsmen start accessing the land without permission and create further conflict?

The state license and registration fees associated with outdoor sports are on the rise, but land access is diminishing because of this trend in land ownership. By legal right, a landowner is a guardian who can completely restrict any and all activity on their property.

I understand many folks such as Roxanne Quimby paid a lot of money and want to protect their piece of the pie. As a result, their initial reaction seems to be posting “no access” signs, building gates, and creating a general atmosphere of “keep away from my piece of the pie.”

My wife and I have twin 5-year-old sons, and they are interested in learning to be Maine sportsmen who hunt and fish just like their dad. We teach our children about respecting other people and their property. I want nothing more than to see my boys grow up to be respectful and responsible sportsmen. But I cannot afford to purchase hundreds of acres to make our own family “private land reserve,” so I depend on being able to take them out somewhere to teach the values.

Where will I take them in the future?

Even right now, we encounter posted sign after posted sign, gate after gate, and even if I am successful contacting these landowners and asking gently for permission, the answer is typically “no.”

Sportsmen do not own a high percentage of our state land, so we need our state government to help us develop methods to acquire and sustain land access in a way that meets the private landowners’ expectations.

It’s my feeling that if a landowner’s intention is to restrict access or deny 100 percent access, they should express that intention up front.

As residents, a portion of each sportsman’s state tax bill supports the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, Maine Forest Service and other departments that protect all land. As residents, if we are restricted from accessing a piece of land, then why are we paying taxes for it?

My situation has to be a common one. I know of many Maine sportsmen with children who have stopped hunting and fishing because of license fees and land-access constraints.

Maine is a beautiful state plentiful with natural resources, but for a majority of resident sportsmen, places to go are becoming the “forbidden fruit.”

Let’s stop complaining and brainstorm ways to make it work. Ideas include state tax incentives for granting access for snowmobile trails, ATV trail systems or hunting; varying tax levels commensurate with the level of public access rights; and specific stiff annual fees designed for DIF&W, the Department of Environmental Protection and others for landowners offering no land-access rights.

Other incentives for landowners granting access could be lower license fees, lower ATV registration fees, the marketing as “public heroes” the landowners who offer access, and developing some type of land sign-in systems to help monitor traffic.

What else can be done?

It is not acceptable for state government to allow ultimatums of any kind between resident sportsmen and landowners. Every landowner doesn’t want to be a sportsman and every sportsman cannot afford to be a landowner. Both landowners and sportsmen have property in common, and Maine has a finite amount.

Our state government needs to support its citizen sportsmen and help us shape and set a defined course for the future. A constructive roundtable brainstorming session between state government, private landowners and Maine sportsmen is necessary as soon as possible.

Andy Fitzpatrick lives in Veazie.