Spring 2010
The Early Years of Maine Coast Heritage Trust
The first of three articles celebrating MCHT's 40th Anniversary
MCHT Council Member Mary Rea recalls an evening, late in the 1960s, when Peggy Rockefeller arrived for a visit: "She marched into my island camp and exclaimed 'Mary, we've got to DO something!' " Peggy and her husband David, both avid sailors, were dismayed by how coastal development had begun transforming Maine's shoreline. Through conversations with the family's attorney, Donal O'Brien, and friends such as Tom Cabot and Bob Patterson, Peggy Rockefeller learned of an ingenious approach to protecting Maine islands. A legal agreement known as a conservation easement would allow landowners to keep their cherished properties while preserving their land's scenic and ecological values.
There was a vision in the beginning when Maine Coast Heritage Trust formed... a vision, which continues today, that this amazing stretch of coastline should not be over-developed...
Caroline M. Pryor, former Vice President of MCHT
Needing more information on potential legal tools for conservation, O'Brien asked fellow attorney David Strawbridge to do further research. "The upshot was," Strawbridge recalls, "that conservation easements looked like the best tool." Rockefeller found a close ally in Bob Binnewies, of Acadia National Park, who was eager for the Park to hold easements and shared her enthusiasm for launching a nonprofit organization to advance coastal land conservation.
Incorporated in September 1970, Maine Coast Heritage Trust was a truly collaborative venture with a tight-knit board and staff and strong working partnerships with The Nature Conservancy, Acadia National Park and others. Board members delighted in Rockefeller's spirited leadership, mischievous sense of humor and absolute dedication: working with her was, Council Member Gordon Abbott, Jr. recalls, "one of the great pleasures of life." In its first year, the Trust facilitated protection of 30 islands (having contacted 310 island owners and met with 46 of them!).
"From the outset, MCHT played a highly prominent role in the national land trust movement," observes Ben Emory, one of the Trust's first executive directors. When Congress threatened in the early 1980s to rescind the federal tax deductions that easements provide, Emory recalls, "we realized we had to pay attention to what was going on in Washington. That led to closer contact with other land trusts and soon prompted MCHT and three other trusts to found the national Land Trust Alliance."
Peggy Rockefeller and Tom Cabot were both down-to-earth people who were interested in practical solutions. I think that had a tremendous impact on the Trust getting started as it did.
David Strawbridge, an attorney who helped establish MCHT
By 1983, MCHT had become what one board member calls the "mother church" for Maine's local land trusts. It established a revolving loan fund, hosted an annual conference, and published a land trust handbook and directory. Tom Bradbury, Executive Director of Kennebunkport Conservation Trust and an MCHT Council Member, recalls how pivotal MCHT's support was to local land trusts during that time: "For technical and legal information, we turned with thanks and confidence to MCHT, grateful they were always there to guide us through any difficult area of negotiation. The staff of MCHT kept providing encouragement, knowing that... collectively [we] could protect the best that is Maine."
From MCHT's Board Chair
Looking Forward
Tom Ireland
Celebrating our 40th anni-versary this year gives Maine Coast Heritage Trust a chance to reflect on our history and to look forward to exciting challenges ahead. I think Trust founders Peggy Rockefeller and Tom Cabot would be delighted, but not surprised, by the scope and quality of the work MCHT is doing all along the coast. The Trust had a stellar year in 2009, completing 40 land conservation projects encompassing 2,500 acres. We expanded our trail network to more than 50 miles, and further strengthened our relationships with partners and local communities.
MCHT will spend the next few months searching for a successor to Paul Gallay, who recently resigned as President to pursue his long-standing interests in environmental law, land-use planning and public advocacy. All of us at MCHT appreciate Paul's two years of service to the Trust and wish him the very best in his future pursuits.
I will serve as President while we conduct a search for Paul's successor. Our 40th year, like the ones that preceded it, promises to be both engaging and productive--we have many exciting land projects underway, and a full slate of outings and events planned this summer. I look forward to seeing you on the coast.
MCHT Given a Treasured Island in Brooklin
"Generations of people from all walks of life have treasured visits to Hog Island, and the Whites took action to ensure that tradition would continue through time."
Ciona Ulbrich, MCHT Project Manager
Maine Coast Heritage Trust recently received the gift of a striking, 78-acre island by Eggemoggin Reach that local residents and boaters have long enjoyed. A beautiful, undeveloped gem close to the public boat launch at Naskeag Point in Brooklin, Hog Island is readily accessible to visitors who enjoy picnics and clamming along its many sandy beaches and coves. During the late 19th century, the island had year-round residents and supported a menhaden factory--foundations of which remain today. A former owner of Hog, Elliot Russell Hedge, donated a highly restrictive conservation easement on the island to Acadia National Park in 1976. Most recently the island was owned by the White family of Brooklin. "The Whites made an exceptionally generous gift turning this island over to our care," observes MCHT Project Manager Ciona Ulbrich. "Generations of people from all walks of life have treasured visits to Hog Island, and the Whites took action to ensure that tradition would continue through time."
Ben Emory, an early Director of MCHT who owns another conserved island in Eggemoggin Reach, recalls how "special small-sailboat adventures in my childhood were often to Hog Island. We lunched by the big rock and picked cranberries along the north shore. I am thrilled by the White family's foresight and generosity."
Progress at Bog Brook Preserve
Two Additional Land Acquisitions
While some whole place conservation efforts can span decades, a few coalesce in a remarkably short period of time. "Three years ago," observes MCHT Project Manager Marty Anderson, "we hadn't conserved any of the four properties that make up the Bog Brook watershed in Cutler and Trescott. This winter, we secured the final 128-acre parcel, thanks to three siblings who shared ownership." This last puzzle piece, with 4,000 feet of frontage along Bog Brook, adjoins three other conserved parcels in the watershed. In combination with the State's nearby Cutler Coast Public Lands, the new property is part of 14,000 acres of contiguous conserved lands.
MCHT also acquired a small lot on a prominent cliff face adjoining Bog Brook Cove. This parcel offers commanding views of Grand Manan Channel, and a prominent house in this location would have detracted from the experience of preserve visitors.
Trail Update
While the Bog Brook trails will not open officially until this fall, trail crews have made significant advances. A 1,000-foot wheelchair-accessible trail now leads to a cobble beach at Moose Cove. Regional Steward Melissa Lee plans to work with an MCHT trail crew this summer to construct bog bridging along the Norse Pond Trail, a 2.5-mile loop trail that offers access to Bog Brook Cove (where impressive, sculpted rocks can be seen at mid- to low tide). "The trail now is very wet," cautions Lee. "Anyone visiting before the bridging is in place should plan on walking right through wet spots to avoid damaging sensitive bog plants off the trail."
Grant Advances Organic Blueberry Production Plans
Within the Bog Brook watershed, MCHT owns 88 acres of productive blueberry barrens, 80 of which are leased to blueberry growers and 8 of which are now in an experimental transition to organic production. Last winter, Trust stewardship staff met with Washington County organic blueberry growers to discuss shared needs. The group recently received a grant to conduct a feasibility study for establishing a value-added facility (to process blueberries into juice, sauce and other products). Members of the group, including MCHT's Melissa Lee, are excited about the potential this project holds to stimulate regional organic blueberry production. Blueberry grower consultant Charlie Hitchings notes that small organic growers have long been up against the massive scale of commercial blueberry production: "I think that Maine Coast Heritage Trust's blueberry initiative is the first thing to come along that shows promise of getting us somewhere."
MCHT Preserve Tours
MCHT will host dozens of field trips this year to Trust preserves and protected areas led by knowledgeable staff, partners, and volunteers. Most trips are free and no advance registration is required (save for boat trips with transportation provided, which do require registration and have fees). A small sampling of trips appears here. For details and a current list of tours, please visit www.mcht.org/tours/ or become a fan of MCHT's Facebook page.
| May 22 | Frenchboro Preserve Bird Walk, Frenchboro Long Island |
| July 6 | Ovens Mouth Hike, Boothbay |
| July 10 | Malaga Island History Tour, Phippsburg |
| July 12 | Merchant Row Cruise, boat leaves from Stonington |
| July 13 | Treat Island Hike and Paddle, Eastport |
See "Getting Out on the Coast" a short video about MCHT Preserve Tours-- one of 5 new videos highlighting the Trust's work.
25 Years Serving MCHT:
Karin Marchetti Ponte, Esq.
Karin Marchetti Ponte began working for Maine Coast Heritage Trust in 1985 when there were four people on staff and--she recalls--"an IBM Selectric typewriter with one-page memory that held our easement template." MCHT needed legal expertise, and Karin--just back from a Peace Corps assignment in Tunisia--wanted to resume work in public interest law. She was soon busy drafting conservation easements and researching Maine's current-use tax programs. Within a year of Karin's arrival, MCHT cofounder Peggy Rockefeller observed "It's very useful having Karin here; now we can't imagine not having her!" Board and staff members have felt similarly ever since.
Karin was soon at the forefront of the emerging conservation law field, offering workshops to the Maine State Bar Association and presenting at national Land Trust Alliance events. She mentored many of the local land trusts forming around Maine, helping fledgling groups draft their first conservation easements. In time, Karin literally "wrote the book" on easements, coauthoring the second edition of the Land Trust Alliance's Conservation Easement Handbook.
When the need arose for a network of attorneys who could represent land trusts and serve conservation- minded landowners, Karin helped launch the Maine Land Conservation Attorneys Network, a group of about 20 attorneys who meet regularly and share resources. "In recent years," Karin observes, "the general level of expertise among lawyers has increased greatly. Conservation techniques have become part of the literature, and even part of some law school curricula."
Maine was among the first states to pioneer use of conservation easements in 1970, and it continues to lead the nation in refining easement legislation. Karin recalls "a satisfying effort" in 1989 in which she worked closely with legislators to amend the Open Space Tax Laws to recognize conservation easements' impact on land values. In 2007, she collaborated with the Attorney General's office, state agencies and other conservation partners to shape an amendment to Maine's Uniform Conservation Easement Act--giving the State greater oversight if easements are amended.
The careful work done to make conservation easements legally sound has paid off, Karin says. "There have been very few easement violations--even nationally, and almost to a one those have been resolved in favor of the land trust. In Maine," she adds, "we've had a remarkable record of compliance with our easements because we work closely with landowners to understand and incorporate appropriate uses of the land." In 25 years, MCHT has never gone to court over an easement violation and only twice over infractions on fee lands.
The legal work Karin most enjoys, not surprisingly, is crafting easements. "The conservation easement is a tool for visionaries who love their land," she observes. "I take that bond seriously and try to have it inform the easement-drafting process, even though the final legal language may sound prosaic. I love seeing a piece of land going from no plan at all to one that will stand the test of time and serve landowners for generations to come."
Staff News
Amanda Devine, MCHT's new Regional Steward for southern Maine, is a graduate of the University of Vermont's Field Naturalist Program. She has worked as a naturalist and guide in Alaska and, more recently, doing planning and stewardship work in southern Maine.
Warren (Whit) Whitney, who has served as MCHT's Community Outreach Manager and Associate Director of Development, recently stepped into a new role as Maine Land Trust Program Coordinator. Whit understands local land trust perspectives well, having formerly directed Friends of Merrymeeting Bay.
Keith Fletcher, MCHT's new Land Project Manager for southern Maine, worked for eight years as The Nature Conservancy's southern Maine Program Manager, and has served on the Wells Conservation Commission and board of Great Works Regional Land Trust.
