1,500 Acres along Bold Coast Conserved Downeast
Maine Coast Heritage Trust, area landowners partner on effort
Topsham: Maine Coast Heritage Trust (MCHT), a statewide land conservation organization, today announced that it has protected four adjacent properties along the Bold Coast in eastern Maine totaling 1,500 acres. The newly conserved land includes nearly two miles of scenic shore frontage, spanning from Moose Cove in Trescott, to Bog Brook Cove in Cutler.
“Together, these properties include an incredible variety of natural resources that are valued by local residents and visitors alike,” said David MacDonald, MCHT’s interim President. “In the coming months MCHT will be creating plans to allow public access to the cobble beaches, headlands, grasslands, pond, and streams contained within these spectacular lands.”
The largest of the properties, Bog Brook Cove, contains 88 acres of productive blueberry barrens, which are currently leased to local growers, and MCHT plans to keep them in production. In addition to being a sustainable economic resource for the region, the barrens provide excellent habitat for marsh hawks and other grassland birds. The property also contains Norse Pond, an important freshwater resource for waterfowl and wading birds.
The newly protected properties add to other conserved lands in the area. The western side of Bog Brook connects to the 12,000 acre Cutler Coast Unit, managed by the State Department of Conservation. The eastern side of the Moose Cove parcel connects to a heath that MCHT conserved in 2005. Together these conservation successes add up to more than 13,500 acres of adjacent conserved land—a landscape large enough to support wide-ranging mammals such as black bear, bobcat and fisher.
The Bog Brook Cove parcel contains a clustered homestead that was owned by Jack and Katharine Pierce of Falmouth. The homestead provided MCHT leverage to extend conservation to the adjacent Moose Cove lands through a creative land-for-structures swap. The owners at Moose Cove, Alan Pederson and David Dixon, had planned to develop the Moose Cove land, but chose instead to swap the land in exchange for ownership of the homestead area at Bog Brook Cove. “I was thrilled when MCHT approached us about conserving Moose Cove,” said Mr. Pederson. “Being able to live in this area, without needing to add development pressure was a win-win.” MCHT retains a conservation easement on the 35 acre homestead now owned by Pederson and Dixon, as well as a right of first refusal should they decide to sell this in-holding.
Local support for the project has been positive, and MCHT is sensitive to the tax implications of conserving these parcels—having already begun talking with the towns about potential impacts. In reacting to the news, one member of the Town of Cutler Board of Assessors said, “As more and more people come to understand the value of natural resources like Bog Brook Cove for our community and our State, we’ll become even more thankful that this land has been conserved over time.”
MCHT has received generous financial support for this project from the Richard King Mellon Foundation, The Elmina B. Sewall Foundation, and the Pew Charitable Trusts through its Northeast Land Trust Consortium, and has a proposal pending with the Land for Maine’s Future Program. “We have until August to raise the balance of our needed funds for this ambitious project,” says MacDonald. “And are grateful to the generous and conservation minded landowners who gave us the opportunity to work with them.”
Contacts:
David MacDonald, Interim President, MCHT, 207-244-5100
Rich Knox, Director of Communications, MCHT, 207-729-7366
About Maine Coast Heritage Trust
Maine Coast Heritage Trust is a statewide land conservation organization committed to protecting the character of Maine. Since 1970, Maine Coast Heritage Trust has permanently protected more than 127, 000 acres in Maine, from the Isles of Shoals to Cobscook Bay, including more than 275 entire coastal islands. Working together with landowners, land trusts, and other community partners, Maine Coast Heritage Trust conserves and stewards coastal lands and islands for their renowned scenic beauty, outdoor recreational opportunities, ecological diversity, and working landscapes. A membership and nonprofit organization, Maine Coast Heritage Trust counts on the ongoing support from members and people who love the coast of Maine.
