The Future of the North Woods

Over at the day job I have a column up editorializing against the drive to dismantle Maine's Land Use Regulation Commission (LURC). It might seem like an arcane subject, but Colin Woodard's "Talk of Maine" column makes the stakes clear for anyone who values the North Woods and would prefer we not see pictures like these in northern Maine any time soon.

Shocker in the Maine Woods

Photo by Dennis Redfield

The proposal by the Plum Creek Timber Company to develop thousands of acres of forestland around Moosehead Lake ran into an unexpected roadblock today:

A Maine judge on Thursday halted Plum Creek’s rezoning plan for the Moosehead Lake region and ordered regulators to reopen hearings on one of the largest and most controversial development proposals in state history.

Maine Superior Court Justice Thomas Humphrey did not comment on the substance of Plum Creek’s massive plan for nearly 1,000 houses and two resorts in the Moosehead region — a point that supporters of Plum Creek’s proposal noted Thursday.

Rather, Humphrey invalidated the Land Use Regulation Commission’s decision on procedural grounds, saying commissioners did not follow their own rules and voted on a substantially rewritten rezoning application without first holding a public hearing.

Plum Creek’s supporters argue that the 975 houses and two resorts — to be developed over as many as 30 years — will create jobs and economic development in an area of the state where opportunities are few and many families struggle to make ends meet. Additionally, the conservation deals negotiated as part of the proposal will protect more than 400,000 acres of forestland, most of which will remain open to recreational activities and commercial timber harvesting.

But critics contend the houses, resorts and resulting traffic will mar the scenic beauty that makes Moosehead unique. They also warned that LURC’s decision set a dangerous precedent, allowing Plum Creek to benefit financially from the development as well as the conservation easements or land sales to conservation groups.

Plum Creek's plan, if enacted, would constitute the largest real estate development in Maine history, so you can imagine the emotions it has stirred up. For my part, I've been skeptical that the economic benefits to the Greenville region could ever live up to Plum Creek's promises. Moosehead is so distant from the East Coast's major population centers. I've always wondered who would drive six hours on poorly maintained back roads from Boston to play golf among the biting black flies. Maybe more people than I imagine. Nor do I have any idea what Judge Humphrey's decision will mean for Plum Creek or Moosehead Lake. I suspect I'm not alone in that regard.

Wind in the Wilderness

Perhaps the most controversial issue in Maine today is the fast-tracking of wind-energy farms throughout the state. One of the planned projects is slated to be developed in a place near and dear to me: remote Highland Plantation, home of my friends Greg and Pat Drummond who run the friendliest sporting camp in Maine, Claybrook Mountain Lodge. In the new Down East we decided to take a big-picture view of the issues around wind energy, from the opportunities and challenges of building offshore wind farms, to the nuts and bolts of turbines, to arguments against wide-scale development of Maine mountaintops. I also offer a personal anecdote.

One Million Acres

One of the subplots of The Poacher's Son concerns the sale of thousands of acres of the Maine North Woods to a timber company that is more interested in real estate development than sustainable forestry. Maine has seen numerous sales of this nature over the past decade or so—and the forest is still changing hands, as today's Bangor Daily News reports:

Under a deal slated to be completed Feb. 1, a company called BBC Land LLC with ties to a Colorado billionaire will purchase more than 900,000 acres — much of it in eastern and western Maine — from current owner GMO Renewable Resources.

John Cashwell, a local consultant for BBC Land, said very little will change under the new ownership. BBC Land will continue to manage the land as a working forest and will still allow public access for recreation, Cashwell said.

Cashwell declined to name the individuals behind BBC Land but described them as “a family from away with ties to Maine” committed to keeping it a working forest. He also declined to name a purchase price.

“This is not a short-term play,” Cashwell said. “It’s a family that is in it for the long term.”

But documents filed last week with the Maine Secretary of State’s Office listed John Malone of Englewood, Colo., as the only manager for BBC Land.

Malone is chairman of Liberty Media, an Englewood-based company with diverse media interests that include the cable channel QVC, the travel website Expedia.com, the Atlanta Braves baseball team and Sirius XM satellite radio.

Ranked No. 110 on the Forbes 400 list of wealthiest Americans, Malone also has emerged as one of the country’s largest individual private landowners in recent years. Malone was No. 5 on a list of the Top 100 landowners in the U.S. in 2010 that was published by The Land Report magazine.

Malone was said to own 1.2 million acres, roughly the same amount as the Irving family, Maine’s largest single landowner. Depending on the scope of Malone’s involvement in the BBC Land deal, he could challenge or even top fellow media mogul Ted Turner as the largest private landowner in the U.S.

Malone already owns tens of thousands of acres in Maine. In 2002, he purchased more than 53,000 acres in western Maine and had previously purchased roughly 15,000 acres around Spencer Lake.

By coincidence, Spencer Lake was the site of the Hobbstown POW camp mentioned in the prologue of The Poacher's Son. But unlike the board members of my fictional Wendigo Timber Company, Malone has so far proven to be responsible steward of his land holdings in western Maine.