Maine Chapter Website

Why do Wall Street jitters make it harder for Maine nonprofits to protect land? What about severe constraints on funding of state and federal conservation programs? Can land preservation happen in a tough economy? Should we purchase easements or buy land land outright? Rare opportunities for land and easement purchases in Maine could add to acreage protected for recreation and wilderness. Come find out on Wednesday February 1 in Holden. Representatives from the Trust for Public Land, the Forest Society of Maine, Downeast Lakes Land Trust, and AMC will describe the land acquisitions they are working on, and the challenges they face. Citizens can make a difference whether these projects get done. Find out how. The talk is in Holden is at 6:30pm on Wednesday, February 1st at Maine Audubon’s Fields Pond Center, 216 Fields Pond Rd, Holden, ME 04429, about 15 minutes south of Bangor. Parking is free and plentiful. This program is co-sponsored by Maine Audubon and the Maine Chapter of the Appalachian Mountain Club. For more information, email Conservation Chair Karen Herold or Audubon Director Matt Dubel. All events are free and open to the public.

Join us on Tuesday January 17th when Carey Kish will talk about his week-long backpacking trek along the West Coast Trail. (Please note: The topic for this presentation was previously “Ecological Recovery in Coastal Maine” but the presenter is now unavailable). This bold 50-mile oceanfront wilderness route (a former shipwreck life saving trail) leads from Port Renfrew to Bamfield in Pacific Rim National Park, Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. Join us on Tuesday January 17th at the Curtis Memorial Library in Brunswick for a potluck dinner at 6pm and Carey Kish at 7pm. Parking is on Middle Street or in a public lot off Union Street. Bring a potluck item to share and your own dinnerware (plate, utensils etc.). Drinks will be available. For more information, email Kathy. All events are free and open to the public.

It seems a ways off now, but registration is now open for the 2012 AMC Annual Meeting! The meeting will be held on Saturday, January 28, 2012 at the University of Massachusetts, Boston. There will be workshops and committee meetings as well as volunteer award recipient presentations during the day, and then a dinner, business meeting, and presentation in the evening. This year’s meeting will include a special celebration honoring retiring President Andy Falender. Registration information is available at this website. If you have any questions regarding the 2012 136th Annual Meeting, please call Cindy Martell, Event & Office Coordinator, at 617-391-6603, or e-mail her.

Part of the management plan for the approximately 67,000 acres of land the AMC owns as part of the Maine Woods Initiative (MWI) is sustainable forestry. Timber is harvested to improve stand health and generate some revenue when the products are used by local mills. Check out this YouTube video of this process in action!

Dr. William Beardsley, Commissioner of the Maine Department of Conservation, will talk on the direction of the LePage Administration, the Department of Conservation’s role as part of the Administration, and the role of non-profit conservation organizations. Beardsley believes that Maine’s economic vitality and conservation are not only interlinked, but can prosper together. The Commissioner also chairs the state panel that is studying the future of land-use regulation in the 10 million acres of unorganized territory. The Commissioner’s talk is co-sponsored by Maine Audubon and the Maine Chapter of the Appalachian Mountain Club. Commissioner Beardsley will address the chapter and take questions in the meeting room of Maine Audubon’s Fields Pond Center, 216 Fields Pond Rd, Holden, ME 04429, about 15 minutes south of Bangor. His talk will begin at 7:00 pm and is free and open to the public. For more information, download a flyer (92 KB PDF) or email Education Chair John Mullens or Audubon Naturalist Holly Twining.

On Tuesday October 25, attend an online volunteer presenter training for AMC’s Energy Conservation and Action for Climate Change Program. This training helps presenters put these concepts in simple terms for audiences aged kindergarten and up. Preview sample presentations, receive access to background materials, and ask questions of experienced presenters. This webinar training takes 90 minutes. Contact Faith Salter for details.

The Forest Society of Maine (FSM), in conjunction with the Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands (BPL), under the Maine Department of Conservation, will host a clean-up day next month on Big Spencer Mountain, off Moosehead Lake’s eastern shore.The two organizations are looking for 10 volunteers to help with removing non-burnable materials from an old fire-ranger cabin site.The clean-up day will be held from 10 a.m.-3 p.m., Friday, Oct. 14. continue

Jennifer and Trevor Seip are living their dream—off the grid in a small structure with modern conveniences. They will explain their choices of alternative energy sources, alternative structures, local agriculture, and homesteading. Their early successes, future plans, and contagious enthusiasm will surely pique your interest. continue

Is it possible to develop land-based wind power as a renewable energy source for Maine while protecting the state’s ecological health, natural heritage, and scenic beauty? Join us to hear a panel of scientists, an environmentalist, and a wind industry representative to discuss wind as an energy source and all that it may entail, controversial and otherwise. continue

AMC has joined the “locavore” movement by serving locally produced foods at some of its destinations. Foods are purchased from regional suppliers, such as a Vermont supplier for the the Highland Center in Crawford Notch facility. Taking it one step further, or rather one step closer, Camp Dodge in New Hampshire and Little Lyford Lodge and Cabins in Maine have their own gardens that supply some of the hearty fare served at these locations. Freshly picked greens at Madison Hut? Well, not as likely. But the huts make efforts to buy in bulk to reduce packaging waste. Overall, transportation of foods is estimated to account for about 20% of the fossil fuel consumption in the U.S., so eating locally produced foods saves on fuel as well as puts dollars back into the local economy. You can read more in this recent AMC Outdoors article.