State plans North Woods pilot program
State officials plan to seek federal aid in February to launch a pilot program to protect Maine's North Woods.
The state will submit the Great Maine Forest Initiative, a proposal developed last month by the Keeping Maine Forests Committee, to access federal programs or funding that would boost efforts to conserve the state's large tracts of forestland, according to reports from the Portland Press Herald and Bangor Daily News. Since the summer, the federal government has expressed interest in helping Maine find ways to advance its conservation efforts, and U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack in November requested the state propose a pilot project that would capitalize on federal programs. The initiative proposes using public and private funding to conserve and manage land in a sustainable way while also keeping it open for commercial use.
The pilot program would likely be modeled around existing federal and state conservation programs, like the USDA's Forest Legacy program and the Land for Maine's Future program, according to the Daily News.
Go to the article from the Bangor Daily News >>
Go to the article from the Portland Press Herald >>
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