Katahdin Lake Project – Deal or Steal?

            Governor John Baldacci called it the deal of the century while Millinocket’s State Representative Herb Clark called it the steal of the century.  The Katahdin Lake project was without question the most controversial land conservation deal in the state’s history.

The deal called for a 6,000 acre parcel surrounding Katahdin Lake to go to Baxter Park, with hunting, snowmobiling and other traditional uses banned.  SAM aggressively opposed the ban, while supporting the acquisition of the property.  SAM’s testimony, delivered at the bill’s public hearing, is included in this issue of SAM News.

The private landowner will receive $13,000,000 worth of forestland including 7,400 acres of public lands and 14,000 acres of privately owned lands. Because the deal included the sale of 7400 acres of public lands, the support of 2/3 of the members of the legislature’s House and Senate was required. 

            From the start, it was clear that the deal was flawed.  For more than a decade, SAM has worked with our conservation allies, supporting every single land conservation project:  Nicatous, the Pingree lands, the Downeast Lakes Project, Machias River, West Branch of the Penobscot, the Katahdin Forest, and more.  Since 1997 we’ve secured two million acres of conservation lands.  Never before has a project banned traditional uses on the lands being purchased and protected.  That’s the wrong approach, unnecessarily dividing the conservation community.

After nearly 80 hours of work, the Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry Committee finally patched together a compromise to bring the Katahdin Lake project to the full House and Senate where it garnered the votes necessary to complete the deal.  Although many legislators expressed concerns about the deal, few wanted to be blamed for losing it.

            Environmental organizations launched a major effort to win legislative approval for the deal.  The battle was epic and at times ugly.  Throughout the process, SAM continued to advocate for hunters, trappers and snowmobilers who enjoy the land surrounding Katahdin Lake today, but will be banned when this deal is completed.

            Taking center stage in this battle was Attorney General Steve Rowe, chair of the Baxter Park Authority, which voted – before the deal got to the legislature – to accept the Katahdin Lake lands into Baxter Park only if hunting, trapping, and snowmobiling were banned on the parcel.  Rowe at one point during the ACF’s work sessions actually said he would oppose accepting the property into Baxter Park if hunting was allowed to continue on that parcel, drawing a firm line in the sand.

In the “compromise” enacted by the legislature, sportsmen will be banned from 4,000 acres where they have enjoyed their heritage for more than a century.  This is not the way to do land conservation and we hope it will not be the chosen path for conservation projects in the future. 

The compromise bill is much more complex than the original proposal.  Here are the major elements, both good and bad.

Katahdin Lake:  the 6,000 acres surrounding the lake will be divided, with 4,040 acres and the lake going to Baxter Park with a ban on hunting, trapping and snowmobiling, and 1,975 acres going to the Bureau of Parks and Lands which allows those activities.  The Gardners will receive approximately $2,150 per acre, the highest price ever paid for conservation land in Maine.

Public Lands:  7,400 acres of public lands in four counties will be sold for $5.5 million.  The state will receive approximately $750 an acre for this land.  Originally, this money was to be spent to replace those public lands in those counties.  The compromise, however, will require that $2.5 million be used to purchase the portion of the Katahdin Lake parcel that will be owned by BPL. 

More Land:  The Bureau of Parks and Lands will secure an option to purchase 8,000 acres to the east of the Katahdin parcel.  The bill does not indicate where the money for this purchase will come from.  For the next two years, BPL will be granted a temporary easement to allow public access and recreation on this adjacent parcel.  Currently the Gardners allow sportsmen to use all of their property, so there is no gain here.

Forestry and Habitat:  the Gardners will sign a statement that they are willing to continue existing independent 3^rd-party certification of the public lands under the Sustainable Forestry Initiative or the Forest Stewardship Certification programs.  They also pledge to enter into an agreement with the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife to manage winter habitat for white-tail deer on those lands.  DIF&W biologists are concerned that these agreements are not sufficient to protect deer habitat.  Both agreements would be in effect only as long as the Gardners own these lands. 

Snowmobiling:  The Department of Conservation agrees to develop a comprehensive plan to increase snowmobiling opportunities in the Katahdin region.

Land acquisition:  The DOC will convene a working group on the acquisition of land for multiple uses, including representatives from the Katahdin region.