Land for Maine's Future: Protecting What Makes Maine Special

is the protection, understanding, and enjoyment of the outdoors. I'll pass the microphone to chess to me. Sorry, I had trouble finding my um unmute button. Um hello everybody. Thank you so much for being with us tonight. Thank you for this opportunity. And my name is Francesca Gundram. I go by Chess and I'm the director of advocacy for Maine Ottabon which is the state's oldest and largest wildlife conservation organization. Our mission is to conserve um main wildlife and wildlife habitat and we do that by engaging people in education, conservation and action. And we have 30,000 members, supporters and volunteers all across the state. And I'll turn it over to my colleague Luke. >> Hi everyone, Luke Frankle here. I'm the Woods, Waters, and Wildlife Director at the Natural Resources Council of Maine. And we're an environmental advocacy organization with the mission um to uh protect uh restore and conserve Maine's environment now and for future generations. And we work across a broad range of issues. So, I'm Woods, Waters, and Wildlife is my program. We also have sustainable Maine that deals with trash and recycling, climate, and clean energy that do deal deals with renewable energy. um as well as a federal policy program that deals with issues at the federal level. >> So let's talk about land for remains future or as those who those of us who know it well and love it refer to it LMF. If you're on the call tonight, I think it's safe to assume that you recognize and you agree that Maine's economy and culture are rooted in connection to the land and water. Today, our outdoor recreation economy contributes $3 billion to Maine every year, and tourism generates $9 billion in direct spending and a a ripple effect of $16 billion a year. They both rely on access to land and water. But by the late 1980s, there was increasingly widespread recognition that the access that we had always enjoyed was increasingly being lost to development pressure and to changing land use patterns. In response, the legislature asked voters to approve a $35 million bond question to conserve places of statewide significance, and the voters responded with very strong support. the land formains future program was born. I want to share part of the establishing statute because I can't improve on it in articulating the need. It reads, "The legislature finds that Maine is blessed with the an abundance of natural resources unique in the northeastern United States. that these natural resources provide Maine residents and visitors to the state with an unparalleled diversity of outdoor recreation opportunities during all seasons of the year and a quality of life unmatched in this nation. That the continued availability of public access to these recreation opportunities and the protection of the scenic and natural environment are essential for preserving the state's high quality of life. that public acquisition programs have not kept pace with the state's expanding population and changing land use patterns so that Maine ranks low among states in publicly owned land as a percentage of total state area. that rising land values are putting the state's real estate in shoreland and resort areas out of reach to most Maine citizens and that sensitive lands and resources of statewide significance are currently not well protected and are threatened by the rapid pace of development and that public interest in the future quality and availability for all main people of lands for recreation and conservation is best served by significant addition of lands to the public domain. And as you can tell from that language, initially that's what the program did. It added program to state owner land to state ownership. So some of the early examples of uh public access being protected in some of the most iconic and beloved places um across the state include Dodge Point in Lincoln County on the Damrescotta River, Mount Kennino, I think we've all been to Mount Kennino and and love it. Namacanta in Piscatus County, Mount Agamanticus down your way Jane in York County, and the Arus Valley Trail in Arussa County in 1992. By the late 1990s though, growing land pressures caused the legislature to broaden the scope of the program to include the conservation of places of local and regional significance and to allow for ownership by other than the state and to open the program to allow lands as I said to be held in private con by private conservation partners. In 2005, the legislature added the WA working waterfront program and so some examples of working lands and areas um are coming up and I think we can move on to our next slide. Great. Yeah, thanks Eliza. Um so a lot of you probably have heard of the LMF program but may not may not be uh familiar with the nuts and bolts of kind of how it operates. So I'm going to walk through a little bit of that so you kind of can can learn how the the program functions and why it's been so successful through the years. So one big big reason why LMF has been successful is that all funds uh given out by the program require a onetoone match. So what that means is you know let's say a land trust or a municipality wants to apply for LMF funding for a project. Um they and let's say they want to purchase 200 thou a parcel of land for $200,000. They're required to put at least $100,000 if they're requesting $100,000 from LMF to complete that purchase. Um, another important point about LMF is, you know, most of the land that has been conserved through LMF remains on the tax rules. You know, a lot of municipalities rely on or all municipalities rely on tax revenue from property taxes. And so, a lot of the land conserved through LMF um is is is land that's, you know, owned and operated by land trusts. Um and so those land trusts they either uh most of most of them um the vast majority either end up uh continuing to pay property taxes or make payments in lie of taxes. So 97.8% of land trust land here in Maine either is continuing to pay property taxes or or making payments in in lie of taxes. So that's another key element of the program. Um and then additionally LMF projects are all communitydriven. They only happen between willing sellers and willing buyers. And in a lot of cases, uh, the projects require municipal approval. So, uh, these projects really only happen where the communities, um, that where they're located, uh, want them to happen. And then finally, the LMS scoring system is really designed in a in a in a fine-tuned way in order to ensure that there's proper balance between rural areas and urbanized areas. And this helps make sure that, you know, no matter where you live across the state of Maine, in all 16 counties, it's likely that there's an LMF property within a short walk or drive from from your home. Um, and you'll see in the next slide that a map that kind of illust helps illustrate that point. >> Perfect transition. Thanks, Luke. Um so unsurprisingly given all of this wonderful background from my colleagues um this program is Maine's most successful land conservation program. So we have conserved land in all 16 counties through this program. And looking at this map prepared by NRCM, thank you NRCM. Uh you'll see points scattered across the state of Maine. and all those different points they represent, you know, farms, working waterfront property, working forests, land trust lands all across the state, which is excellent. And they do have um different versions of this map on their website that are really fun to poke around and and um examples of um projects that have been um successfully conserved because of LMF. Um so I'm just going to run through some of the raw numbers because they're really impressive and they're worth stating. Um, so through this program, since it was started in the the late 80s, we've been able to conserve 75 recreational water access sites, 45 farms. So that ends up being more than 10,000 acres of farmland, 33 commercial working waterfront properties all along the coast, more than um 1,200 miles of shoreland, more than um around 160 mi of former railroad corridors to recreational for recreational trails as well. Um, and the big one here, 650,000 plus acres of conservation and recreation land. And that land, as you've heard already, you know, guarantees access for traditional outdoor wreck opportunities. So, bird watching, fishing, hunting, trapping, hiking, etc. Um, and then more than 333,000 acres of working forest land, and that remains in um, private ownership with permanent land conservation agreements. So, all different kinds of land types conserved all across the state. And what we're going to do now is transition to give you a couple examples. So, we've we've already nailed down a few. Um, but we're going to just dig into half a dozen or so um that really show again the the broad reach and impact of this program and I'll give it over to Eliza for our first one. >> So, another of the early acquisitions in 1990 was the acquisition of the Cutler Coast. The um public reserve is more than 12,000 acres of blueberry baronss, woodlands, petlands, and these dramatic rocky headlands that you see here that are interspersed with pocket coes and cobble beaches. And there are a handful of campsites. And now by this time in 2026, those are very competitive. So if you'd like to camp there, you'd best get best get to Cutler darn early in the morning and be ready to hike a good heart hike. um because it's a remarkable beautiful place and um you'll find 10 miles of trails with ATV enthusiasts able to explore nearly 20 miles through the interior. Um and I can just say from my own experience that this is an economic driver for Washington County. It's not a not a place that's handy for most of us. And so if you're going to go, you're likely to stay a few days and spend some money. Excellent. Another success story, uh, the expansion of the Aristic State Park. That's Maine's first state park created in 1939. It's uh just a few miles south of Preskyle and it draws um residents from year round from the area to enjoy um camping and hiking and and there's uh beach picnicking and snowshoeing and snowmmoiling, crosscountry skiing, all kinds of stuff. And with a grant from this program, the state um was able to expand the park by purchasing, um at a really solid price a nearly 100 acre acre parcel um which was actually owned by federal DOT in 2010. And so um by expanding the park with this nearly 100 acre parcel, it helps um expand the recreational capacity of the land, which is uh really important. um because this is a place uh in particular where there is very little public land too. So um we're really this was a really wonderful um wonderful um outcome. And next up, Luke. >> All right, great. And now here's a here's a good example of a water access site. So this is Hunter Cove, which is along Rangely Lake. And what this site does is it provides public access to a very popular fishing uh spot in the area. A lot of you are probably also familiar with the Northern Forest Canoe Trail. Um, this site is actually along that trail and it's a really popular point uh for people to stop off along their their route there. Um, and so what this site is is the state agencies um they established a pedestrian portage trail um that connects the parking area to the the the watercraft launch and the water access site. Um, and in addition to, you know, uh, access for for boating, it also supports other daytime uses, including swimming, picnicking, and other things. And just the bottom right corner, you can see kind of the dollar amounts that were involved in the project. So, LMF contributed $100,000, but the matching contributions were well over that 1:1 and actually amounted to $25,000. Excellent. Um, another different kind of story, a farm. Uh, Randall Orchard's um, protection, their story. Um, this, uh, property is located in Standish and it's been in active production for more than 100 years. It's familyowned. Um, it's got working farm and working forest property. Um, and in 2015, the land owner Richard Randall sold a conservation easement to protect the agricultural viability of this land um for the future of um farming. And not only um does that help to protect important agricultural soils and and we have um lofty goals in in the state of Maine to not only conserve um you know land that's got um you know diverse habitats and and is great for recreation but also to protect farmland and um so really critical whenever we can identify a place that is um viable for farming and um has really productive um soil structure to conserve it. So um we're also really excited um from the main Ottabon perspective with a project like this because the um many adjacent lands were also um conserved as well. And so those abuing conservation lands help to support um and connect wildlife habitat, which is um obviously critical to my organization's mission and a great example of how this um program is just really diverse in its um and how it it tackles so many different natural resource issues. The number one threat to wildlife in Maine is habitat loss and fragmentation. So something like this is exactly what we want to be seeing especially in southern Maine when there's a lot of pressure on um our existing land base. So um I've been to this orchard just coincidentally and I'm sure those of us in southern Maine when you go to pick apples it's um one of the one of the places that comes to the top of the list um certainly in the the Portland area and they supply apples to folks right on site and then also to major grocerers in the region. And then you can see those um LMF funds required for or or um allocated for the project and then the matching contributions again much more um it was a really healthy um and robust application. All right. And next up here's an example of one of the uh properties that was protected under LMS working waterfront access protection program. And so this is Musubc Muscles which is located um in Jonesport in Washington County. And this site is responsible for approximately 25% of Maine's muscle harvest. So a very significant uh driver of our marine economy. Um the site also processes a numerous others uh seafood that numerous other seafood products that are harvested. You can see them listed on the slide there. Um and in 2012, LMF improved this site by purchasing an additional fishing vessel and also improving the infrastructure related to muscle processing to meet kind of new market expectations. And just to illustrate again how a lot of these sites are economic drivers for the the local communities, this project directly employs 12 people and an additional 45 plus fishermen regularly land their catch at this property. And again in the bottom right you can see that uh the matching contributions to the LMF funds were about three times greater. So this these programs are great to incentivize private investment into into these uh very important areas. So, we hope we've convinced you that conserving land is critical for recreational access, for the protection of our food system, and for our economy. Um, agriculture and seafood harvesting each account for about a $3 billion impact on the state annually. But conservation is also one of the most basic things that we can do to address two of the most pressing environmental issues of our time, which as you know are climate change and biodiversity loss. And that's because trees and plants absorb carbon. They hold it and they eventually contribute it to soil. Also, open space allows both wildlife and plant species to move in response to warming temperatures. and varied and connected habitats are essential to ensuring the continued variety of life on Earth, which make ups makes up ecosystems, the foundation of life on Earth. So, it's no wonder that Maine's climate action plan calls for conserving 30% of our land by 2030. And yet only 22.5% of Maine has been conserved and we've only added a smidge over 2% since that 3030 recommendation was established in 2020. Development pressure threatens our forests, our farms, our waterfront access. We've seen development pressure escalate across the state since the pandemic. And in this pivotal moment, LMF has pledged or expended virtually all of its available funds. So conservation opportunities are at risk right now. We need to act during this legislative session to replenish the fund. Our organizations are supporting any and all available options to do so. Well, pass the mic. Oh, and so here's a here's some funding history. >> Excellent. Yeah, great. Thanks, Eliza. Um, so we'll get into uh what are our options right now in this particular legislative session to help fund this program, but it's important to look at how it's been funded uh throughout history um which has informed some of our decision-m of the present. Um, so unfortunately, even though this is Maine's most successful land conservation program and there are so many different stakeholders um involved and supportive of this program, it's historically very bipartisan. Um, we do not have a long-term secure funding source for this program. And so funding has been pieced together over time. And the majority, as you can see from this list, the majority of funding since it was established um has come from bonds. And passing a bond is a is really hard to do. And it's getting harder over time. The um while while they are usually supported and have been throughout history, we are seeing um sort of the margins are getting a little bit tighter. Um, so just um sort of a little bit of um you know how we think about what what what is the most politically um viable option for us right now. But you'll see um it was as established with that $35 million bond and um then um there was sort of a brief moment where there was some money allocated from the state's budget um for this program. Um and then the biggest bond we saw right at the turn um uh at 1999 there. And uh since then sort of scattered a few bonds here and there, many of which have been a part of bigger bond packages. But in order to pass a bond, you need to convince 2thirds of the legislature, twothirds of lawmakers in the House and the Senate um to support passing on that bond question to the public. And as um over time that's just getting it's just getting a lot harder for us to for us to accomplish. Um but certainly um still something that we're we're trying for and and I'm hinting at that. So we'll hear a little bit more um in a moment. But for the first time ever in 2021, LMF was um funded over four years um through $10 million allocations from the budget. And that was huge. We had a few allies um who were legislators who were appropriators who helped us um establish that. But if you look at a um a chart of how money has been dumped into LMF um you see if uh how quickly it comes back out. So it's up and down, up and down, up and down. The needs are so so tremendously high and we just never have enough money. Um and as we've said throughout um this program, you know, we're we're losing out on really good opportunities to fund land and other kinds of conservation projects that can be funded um that can be supported through LMF um because it doesn't have money. We are practically almost entirely at zero dollars right now. Um so what are we going to do about that? Okay, a little bit more in the background, too. >> Yeah. So, as Chess mentioned, although the program hasn't had a sustainable, you know, long-term uh continued funding source, it has been funded several times, as Chess just mentioned, and you know, across different administrations. And the only way that you're going to get funding like that, especially Chess mentioned how hard it is to pass a bond. So, six different bonds have been passed for LMF, and the only way that you can accomplish that is if the program is is bipartisan and widely very popular. Um, we mentioned that it's an economic driver. Um and as a result and has kind of these broad programs that touch on kind of Maine's heritage heritage industries um and so over 100 conservation organizations uh environmental sporting fishing farming forestry and other organizations um support LMF um and there's a broad LMF coalition that our organizations are a part of as well as an umbrella of a ton of other organizations and over a 100 municipalities across the state have also uh supported the program through the years. Um, and just to touch on some of the numbers again, uh, of what the LMF helps bring to the table from an economic standpoint, you know, uh, Maine's agriculture sector is 11.7 billion, forest products is $8.5 billion, uh, tourism 7 billion, and seafood harvest is about 3.3 billion. So, these are pretty significant numbers, and LMF projects directly support all of those industries that I just mentioned. So, I think I jumped ahead and said most of this, but as you've heard, the the funding is virtually gone. There's a little bit of uh something over a million dollars available in the working waterfront, but it's not enough to meet the needs. Um, as we've mentioned, we've seen unprecedented development pressure since the pandemic. Um, I'm a hiker. We're out across the state and we see a lot of development taking place in places that it didn't used to exist and a lot of gates going up that keep people from getting out on the land. And meanwhile, we've all experienced the devastating impacts of climate change. And I don't need to tell this group how frightening and um impactful they are. So now is the time to invest in our working lands, in our recreational economy, in climate resilience, and in the beauty and open space that define our state. One of the first options for refunding replenishing the land form's future program is a bond question. It is there is one uh already filed. It is sponsored by Senator Russell Black who is a Republican, a farmer from Franklin County. it it would be for $50 million. Of course, all of that is always negotiated through the process and it is currently in the appropriations and financial affairs committee. Bond questions. Um I'm a big fan of bonding. Very few of us pay cash for our house or any other large tangible uh acquisition. So, it makes sense to spend the to to to spread the uh expense out over time, but that's not true for all members of the legislature. And bond questions require a twothirds vote to get out of the legislature. So, that's a far more challenging um option than some of the others. Yeah. And another uh a second funding option that's also in play this year is LD593. And that's another bill that's sponsored by Senator Russell Black, but again, but rather than being a bond, it's a $10 million per year general fund appropriation. Um, and so that's about the funding level that the program has received in the past and is about kind of the level of funding that's needed to continue it um into the future. It's not there's obviously a lot more need out there, but that's kind of like a baseline level of funding to keep it uh going as it's gone in years past. And this bill actually uh was something that was uh had a public hearing last year during the first uh the first session and it was unanimously approved by the ACF committee as well as the House and Senate. So received wide bipartisan support and it's currently has been carried over to the current session on the special appropriations table. Um and so they'll deal with these at the very end of of this current session um in April. Um, and that's when, you know, if other funding strategies don't don't come through, then this is is an option as well. >> And the the third option for us that's in play right now is is the trickiest, this one, LD1312, um, which is sponsored by Senator Terresa Pur, um, Democrat of Cumberland County. Um, so what this strategy would do is direct a portion of the interest from what's called the budget stabilization fund or the rainy day fund to LMF. And you might have seen um certainly in maybe the last few weeks talk of this rainy day fund in um the media and uh as it's the the plan is to dip into this this this fund. Um but the budget stabilization fund is basically like a like a savings account that sets set aside. Um so any surplus revenue um that comes up during uh more prosperous times um is it's there to cover any revenue shortfalls. So um anytime there's you know an unexpected um emergency or a deficit, this is when you would dip into the rainy day fund. Um and this particular administration, the Mills administration has spent a lot of time um building up this fund and to actually to its cap um and building up those reserves. That's just a um a something that that this administration has really valued. Um but there are uh and and as maybe you've seen in the media that there's a plan to to take money out of this fund to cover um a few um priorities for the administration this um legislative session. But the goal of this strategy would be to take a portion again of the interest that comes from this rainy day fund and route that to LMF. Um, so it's a little bit of a a trickier option. Um, it would help, we think, generate a few million dollars every year, excuse me. Um, with fluctuations certainly in play depending on how much money is in the rainy day fund and what the what anyone administration values in terms of the how much money they want to have in that fund. So, it's never going to be a a sure thing for how much um the the program would get, but um something would be coming its way and um would be from what I understand deposited into the program every month. Um so, very creative, very different kind of idea. There's a lot um at play with this one, but um this how to deal with this um strategy will will really come up throughout the budget negotiations which are happening right now. So, all of our organizations are testifying on different parts of the supplemental budget for this second legislative session um and talking about this element um that could be included in the budget among other things. So, likely in the next few weeks um we'll have a sense of of where where we can go. But with that, we've got a few um ways that you can help us. And each of us are going to talk about one of these. And I believe I'm talking about the first of contacting your lawmaker. So, we've given you three different bills um you know, that are that are in play, three different strategies, but really the best thing you can do because we have so many different options in play is just tell your lawmaker that putting money in this program is a priority for you. and tell them why and make it personal and um you know take a look at um NRCM again has those list of different LMF properties all across the state. See what's near you. See I I would hazard a very safe guess that every single one of us on this call have been to an LMF property or benefited from an LMF property. Um, so write your lawmaker and tell them that you support funding this program this legislative session. That would be a huge help to us, especially as we're talking about um, you know, variety of different ways again to fund the program, some of which might require us securing twothirds of the legislature to vote with us. So, every single message counts. So, thank you in advance for anything you can do to talk to your lawmaker. Another thing you can do um is join us for the LMF Day of Action at the State House, which is an event that's being sponsored uh by the LMF coalition, including our three organizations. And that's going to be on Thursday, March 12th. And so you can uh look online on NRCM's web page and our events. We have it linked, but other organizations are also sharing the event because it's put on by the coalition. The first, I think, 150 people that show up get a free t-shirt um that says LMF, a green t-shirt. So, if if you're not uh one of the first 150, make sure to wear green if you're going to be at the event. And the whole point of that is just to show awareness. They're working through the supplemental budget right now. That's one avenue to fund the program in addition to the bills. And so, that's going to be playing out over the next couple weeks. So, this event's kind of timed perfectly to coincide when the leg lawmakers are kind of talking about what priorities they're going to fund for the year. The third thing that you can do and um we should talk about timing as well is you can submit a letter to the editor to your local newspaper. As Chess was saying regarding contacting your legislator, it's less important that you speak in the specifics around the LD or around the amount of money. And really what is necessary right now is to say that you believe in Land for Main's future program. Speak from the heart about your connection to it, your local place that you love. Um I loved hearing Jane's experience and then call for funding. And that's really all you need to do. um you're of course aware of the the dailies, but don't forget the weeklies because believe me, even if you think that LTE letters to the editor are an old-fashioned thing, politicians read them and it's somebody's job to keep track of them. So that's something that you can do to be helpful. And our final idea is go to an LMF property. They are required under their funding to have a sign that says that they are funded in part by the land for mains future program. Find the sign, take a picture, take a selfie, share that with us, and we if with your permission, we'd like to be able to share that out with politicians and with others to get them excited about this program because it has been responsible for conserving some of the most remarkable places in our state and there's more work to do. So I think yeah we're at the end of our presentation and we are open to questions and hopefully answers. Thank you all so much. That was really really great. Um I learned a lot and and I and I felt like I knew a lot already. So thank you so much for that. Um I will go ahead and moderate the questions. It looks like David has his hand up. So we can start with David. >> Okay. Yeah. I want to thank the three presenters for uh the information and I'm I'm rather new to Maine so it's it was very helpful to me. Um so we have three uh three bills in play in the legislature. What will happen if one of them passes? Will the other two collapse? Uh or is it possible we could have two or three of them all pass? >> I'll jump in if you guys can stand it. Um >> so no, we're the they won't all three pass. Um they are in each in different stages of the legislative process but essentially the pro that process ends with think of it as a funnel and the funnel is the appropriations committee and they will decide what gets funded. Um one option is as you know is the insertion of LD of 1312 into the budget. Um and that is beginning to look right now as the most likely option. Things could change. Um and if that happens, other options will not go forward. So even if there has been a vote on a direct appropriation, it still has to get through that funnel and we we won't be we won't have the terrible problem of multiple sources of funding happening at once. Thank you. Um, I have a question, but I want to see if anyone else wants to pop in before me. Go ahead, Ashley. >> Um, my question was just, um, what are like the deadlines for these, I guess? Um what what day do we need to like be able to take all these actions by? >> That's a great question, Ashley. I'll jump in first. Um so it's the this sort of funding funnel that Eliza was just talking about means that it's all really going to happen at the end of the legislative session. So really in the the closing weeks, um many of the budget discussions are happening right now. So, it is important to reach out to your lawmakers, for example, now um or work on an LTE now because they'll see those things as they're working through the budget, which would be really helpful. But the um um those really those those final decisions will happen um at the sort of waning end here of of March. Um and and in April 15th is technically the adjournment day for the legislature. So we're really kind of in crunch time right now to get to the end. Um which is why we've um NRCM is is the lead here, but we're we're we've planned that LMF day of action really at a at a good time. That's sort of like right in the middle of when we're talking about where money should be spent in the state. Um, so now over the next few weeks is probably the um not a super helpful answer, but it is where we're at. >> Yeah. And just to add in add on to that, there is so we mentioned that the budget process there's an opportunity to and there's been testimony um or they're having public hearings actively for the supplemental budget. There's also going to be um a change the budget's going to get a change package when they repro the forecast out um which is actually going to be happening later this week. They're going to kind of arrive at the numbers um of the updated uh for the and they're going to have to adjust the budget based on that forecast. But there will be an opportunity for a public hearing um at that opportunity at that instance um as well. And so we're kind of in this song of dance if there's all these options out there. We're not sure which one, you know, is going to be most popular among the lawmakers. Um, but I know all of our organizations, you know, we we try to do a good job of getting information out there as things evolve. Um, so I think following us, our organizations on social media, um, and and you know, or subscribing to emails, that's we try to keep our our members up to date um, on information like that as kind of the it's a moving target. >> Thank you all. Katherine, would you like to go next? >> Yeah, I my question is whether the um any one or several of these organizations have a um um a plan that sets forward goals for habitat corridors like where do your where are your target uh land acquisitions? >> I can jump in on that one. Um, first, um, great question, Katherine. And, um, you know, the the there are factors within an LMF application where you do benefit if you can demonstrate that you are taking steps to better protect a certain kind of habitat or or connect different lands together. So, that just supports your application generally. Um but a lot of that really good work to um conserve super biodiverse places, places that are extremely ecologically significant um are um are happening most in other spaces and LMF can support that work certainly but other natural um you know programs within other natural resource agencies um really take the lead on that. So there's an, you know, example, the beginning with habitat program, the main natural areas program. Um there's a there's a plan to try and establish um a landscape level conservation blueprint for the state to really help us identify how not only we we know where these really great rich places are that are are really special and important for for a variety of wildlife species and keeping them intact is important, but how do we connect them right through corridors or otherwise? Um, so there's a lot of talk right now on how we do that at the landscape level and I could see LMF being a really um important component of that work. So it's it's just sort of a piece of that puzzle. But great question. >> Thank you. Uh David, do you want to go again? >> Okay. Uh so in in one of the slides we were introduced to u how much uh LMF uh uh gets us along to the 30 by30 and I'm a big advocate for that that goal. So uh LMF uh support doesn't do it do it all. Uh so there what other mechanisms in this state are going to get us to 30 by30 if for instance LMF fails entirely is that's a big question I think >> that is a big question I don't think um I don't think failure is an option so should we fall short of funding this session you can bet that Chess and Luke and I and others um Jane and her colleagues will all be right back at the state house fighting for this next year. But uh I coordinate action in Maine around the land and water conservation fund which is a federal program um which is funded you know for good or ill uh by offshore the fees paid by companies who conduct offshore drilling um on the east coast. Um so the those federal funds are in hand and we all need to make sure that they stay in that program. There are there are smaller ways um of acquiring state held property and there are nonprofits throughout the state like mine, like the Nature Conservancy, like the Trust for Public Land who continue to conserve land even, you know, not every deal um that is successful ful has been conducted with land remains future or uh land and water conservation fund dollars. Those are as we hope we have made the case extraordinarily productive and helpful. But I don't think that anyone's going to stop working on conservation should we fall short in the next six weeks. >> Thank you, Eliza. Uh, Cliff, would you like to go next? You're on mute, Cliff. >> Yes. A key piece that you have to press. Um, I want to thank all the presenters here and add a couple of comments to think about later on when you talk about the state of Maine and land for Maine's future. I'm in an organization that does a lot of research around hydraology and the state of Maine has the most forested land in the lower 48. And keep in mind that we're like a rainforest for New England. And the fact that we're so heavily forested, we are we are a natural sink for long-term water storage. Um you can read all the studies and particularly rainforest studies, but Maine is the same way. The hydraology of Maine is very special. That doesn't mean we can't see droughts, but what that does mean is that we have more water than most because we have the forest to keep it protected. Also wanted to mention briefly that I partnered about 16 years ago with the land for main futures, the nature conserancy and a private land owner that was getting ready to sell almost 9,000 acres of land and then subdivided into 18 parcels. and the Nature Conservancy, me and the PR and this private land owner that was getting ready, we had a meeting and we said, "Could you give us a year? We want to try to find somebody to buy the whole piece of property and to maintain the property as forest land with selective cutting because the history of the property goes way back to the early 1900s, 1920s. There was a big plantation planted here called the Levit plantation. And um over the years the trees grew and you know certain spots on the plantation you can look down the row and go my god look at how straight those trees are. Um but the local people that lived in this area were able to log for companies that bought the property. But they always did it in a way realizing how important it was to keep their future employment and not to strip it. So what we did is we found a land buyer, a large land buyer who would do selective logging and we at the time we had them sign off on other easement restrictions. No um resource extraction. The entire property is uh sandy lom and it grows trees extremely fast. However, there is large large vast area this whole property of gravel. So we made sure that gravel pits could not be put in and taken back and that the state of Maine would hold a recreational easement. Now, my company, I I ran a I still run a mountain biking adventure company, and over the years, we partnered with these people, like I said. Um, and we we designed with the loggers in mind, helping very specific hiking trails, 30 miles that are there. And we're talking a piece of property that's very hilly and very wetlandy. So try to imagine hills and wetlands. So yeah, I just want to give you a little background on what we did and how we raised $3 million to get that through the through the great effort of the Nature Conservancy nationally helped us and the state of Maine kicked in money and my company kicked in a little money and the lo some of the logging companies kicked in a little money. >> Thank you. Yeah, I'm glad you mentioned uh the drinking wa the the water element of Maine and one of the it reminded me one of the key components of LMF when they're scoring is they have um uh you can score higher if the land is involved in protecting the watershed of a public water supply. Um so that's one way that they incentivize projects to be located that protect water resources. Yeah, I think it's a good point to keep in mind that the hydraology of Maine is probably one of the best in the lower 48 because of our forest. >> Thank you. Thanks, Cliff, for that great story. Appreciate you sharing that. Mhm. >> Um, I was curious if if there if anyone is tracking a list of people who want to apply for these funds, like is there a compelling way to report out, you know, how many projects could be happening if we were to continue to fund LMF? I think that's a hard one. Um because I think people might not be coming forward if they don't think that there's money in the fund. So or they either they're it's a little like job hunting, right? If they they get discouraged and they um don't try or they simply go a different route looking for a different source of funds. But with climate change such a you know such a factor I think we need every single tool at our disposal. >> Great. Thank you. Um and then just one other question. And I'm wondering if you can talk about, you know, I'm just thinking of messaging and when you all said how difficult it's been to to fund this throughout the years and how it's getting harder, what why is it getting harder, what are the what are the um roadblocks um other than, you know, in a more storytelling kind of way, you know, what are the roadblocks and how what can we talk about to try to help when we're putting messaging out. >> I think one roadblock, and I welcome Chess and Luke's thought, is simply that we've relied in the past on bond measures, and those require a twothirds vote. That's a very, very heavy lift. And sadly, Maine is not exempt from the kind of hyperartisanship and anger that has erupted across our country. and we see it daily. There was there was some pretty silly stuff that took place at the legislature today. Um and that's why we say that we we have less, you know, we have fears about whether we could get a bond question. Um I think lifting up the same messages that it's effective, that it is really beneficial to our local communities, that it is beneficial to our health, to our economy. Um and and also just always that love, you know, this matters to me personally and I'm a voter are all ways to help lift it up. And I'll and I think we also I think in the long term are looking for a a a long-term funding source and that that's a bigger bite. So I'll defer to Chess and Luke on their thoughts. I think you're spot on, Eliza. The only thing I'd add that is not necessarily for for this group other than um maybe you can help us push your lawmakers to be these people is that we we while we're very we're very grateful to you Senators Black and Pur for putting in LMF legislation, we're really at a point right now where um we only have a couple lawmakers that we can really rely on to be champions for land conservation in the legislature. And that's a big problem. It's a it's it trickles down into other environmental issues, too. And um some things some lawmakers care about, you know, specific environmental issues, but but con but land conservation has it's it's been really hard. It's been hard the last few years. The only reason we got that money in the budget um in 2021, I believe, um that $10 million over four years was because we had um someone who who really believed in it, a lawmaker that had a lot of appropriating power and really believed in it and threw her power and might behind it. And um we're not seeing that as much lately. Um a lot of um lawmakers have they just have really different priorities. And we're also dealing with a lot of problems right now in Maine. So, there's a lot of competition to make your thing a priority. And um I I hate to say it because I I hope we've really sold that this really is an urgent issue. Um but it's it it it's a struggle in the competition. you know, we're talking about health care issues and social issues and um that are impacting all kinds of people all across the state. It's um you know, you're always in competition, but it's just been a little extra hard lately. So, so that's where um obvious obviously, yes, we want to help and you know, we're I'm a C3 organization here. Um, so we, you know, we're not, we don't endorse candidates or work in the electoral space, but support organizations that do help to identify people who can run for office and and win who are going to be conservation champions. So, just pay attention to organizations like main conservation voters. They help identify candidates that are and Sierra Club, of course, does work in this space, too. I'm sorry. Um, and there are other organizations as well, but um, and push your lawmakers to to be those conservation champions, too. So, that's um, just a little bit more maybe in the behind the scenes what we're working with, but it is it's a reality. >> That one's huge. And yeah, so um something that any of us can do as individuals and our organizations can do even if we're 501c3 is we can simply say when people want to talk to us and are looking for our attention and for to you as individual voters is to make clear that this is something that's important to you so that hopefully they'll be carrying that when they do get elected. And just just adding into what uh what Chess and Eliza said, I think they hit the nail on the head with the hyperartisanship. A lot of environmental issues traditionally and especially in Maine haven't been uh haven't been partisan. You know, they've been widely bipartisan like water water quality um is consistently a bipartisan issue we see as well as like um you know, protecting uh especially working lands as well. Um, but uh, another thing I'll add is just that the last time a bond was passed for LMF was in 2012. And so that was the last time a lot of legislators actually ended up were voting on an issue with LMF. So a lot of our work this session has been educating a lot of lawmakers about what the program is and what it does because a lot of them, you know, maybe haven't heard of it. And then as soon as you say, "Where's your district?" And then they tell you and then you like look at the LMF projects and say, "Oh, this project." They're like, "Oh, yeah. I've been there and like that's a great place. So, there's been a lot of that this session of reconnecting people to the program and I think it's it's like Chess mentioned they they say, "Yeah, this seems like a good idea. I support the program, but when the rubber hits the road when it's time to fund things and you have to deal with things like healthcare um and other urgent needs, especially with all the federal programs that have kind of gone away of recently, it's tough to put um put environmental issues on on many things, but that's that's what we're all trying to do. So >> great. Thank you all so much for that. Um this has been a wonderful, wonderful uh community conversation. We really appreciate you taking the time out tonight to come. This is recorded, so we'll be sure to share it with the people that had to miss. Um and we will do whatever we can to try to help. And I'm already thinking, you know, I love this idea of taking pictures of yourself next to an LMF sign and telling us where it is. And if anyone on this call wants to put that together, you can send it to us and we can get it to to Luke and Eliza and Chess and um join us in Augusta, please. And otherwise, stay in touch and we'll we'll just keep keep track and see what happens. Um but thank you all again for a lovely night. >> Yeah, thank you. >> Thank you for having us >> very much. >> Thank you.