Bill aims to save Maine's oldest forests from disappearing within decades

MAINE, USA — Late last year a team of ecologists came to a dire conclusion : without new conservation and management initiatives, half of the oldest forests in Maine’s unorganized territory could be gone in the next 35 years.

A bipartisan bill introduced by state Sen. Rick Bennett (R-Oxford) aims to reverse that trend while also protecting Maine’s undeveloped lakes and ponds through prescriptive conservation measures.

After overcoming initial opposition from state officials and forest industry groups through multiple compromises, the bill was unanimously voted out of committee and approved by the state Senate this week. Although the version of L.D. 1529 the full legislature received is drastically different from what Bennett originally proposed, it now has support from both conservat