PORTLAND – Concerned that the sale of Fox Islands could limit access to the abutting coastal state park, conservation officials in Maine have begun an effort to acquire the 5.3 acres on which the islands stand.

Home to a 45-foot mound of rock that affords panoramic views of the coast and Seguin Island Light, the islands are not part of Popham Beach State Park. The Maine Department of Conservation and the Maine Coast Heritage Trust have begun negotiations with the islands’ owner to include them permanently with the park.

“I think most people who go to Popham think the islands are part of the park,” said Ralph Knoll, deputy director for Maine’s Bureau of Parks and Lands. “Now we’d like to secure those islands so that they can be permanently protected.”