Tree Huggers

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/28439636

The Rangeley Lakes region can often feel like a forgotten corner of Maine, far from the state’s famed coasts or cities. This western stretch is remote, rugged woodland. Forests become impassable in spring’s muddy months and cool mountain streams teem with a trout population that draws legions of recreational fishers. It’s also a part of the state where logging and timber hauls have indelibly shaped the land and livelihoods of those who live there.

Now about 78,000 acres surrounding the Rangeley Lakes may soon be linked to 500,000 acres of protected land reaching across central Maine to New Hampshire. A project announced March 18 and agreed to by four leading conservation groups and a 70-year-old timber company aims to bolster a priority spawning ground for brook trout, broaden a migration corridor for wildlife and restrict future development in the woodlands.

The plan to permanently protect lands around Maine’s Magalloway River is the brainchild of the Rangeley Lakes Heritage Trust, the Forest Society of Maine, the Northeast Wilderness Trust, and The Nature Conservancy.

https://archive.ph/TDNHQ