A recent record-setting land donation to the Maine Woodland Owners has increased the land trust's portfolio to almost 12,000 acres of forest around the state, the County reported.
The donation came from Friendship, Maine, resident Donna Roggenthien. Though she resides in Knox County, she owned 326 acres in Aroostook County's Moro Plantation, which she donated to the Maine Woodland Owners in the hope that others could enjoy it.
The parcel of land — the second and largest donated to this organization in Aroostook County — includes nearly 12,500 feet of shoreline around Rockabema Lake, which the County noted is an important fishery for both brook trout and landlocked salmon. Roggenthien wanted the public to enjoy the lake's "magnificence," as she put it.
"Her generosity is amazing," Jennifer Hicks, director of communications and outreach for the Maine Woodland Owners, told the County. "Her dedication to conservation is astounding."
The organization will honor Roggenthien's wishes for the land by administering it as it does the 8,000 acres it owns and the 3,300 acres it holds in conservation easement. The Maine Woodland Owners provides active forest management for these properties, caring for the natural woodland habitat and maintaining public access for hunting, hiking, and other outdoor activities.
The Maine Woodland Owners started its land trust in the 1990s in response to a growing need to conserve forests in the state. Many of these areas were once harvested for timber but now show 20 or 30 years' worth of new growth, restoring some of their usefulness to the environment as well as their interest to nature lovers.
According to Hicks, the owners are often bonded to the land, but they may have aged out of being able to take care of it. For them, the Maine Woodland Owners offers a way to keep the land cared for and open to the public.
"For some, keeping that legacy alive is really important and a lot of people don't want to let go of something that has been in the family for generations," Hicks told the County. "It becomes a very important way for them to note their legacy and contribute to the community and benefit the greater good."
The Maine Woodland Owners is also an outreach and education program that will be celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. It helps interested landowners learn to manage their forest properties and attract wildlife, as well as understand how plants, including native species, impact the environment.
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"It's amazing what kinds of tree species promote different types of wildlife. And the spacing between the trees and the undergrowth and the amount of cover," Hicks told the County. "The policy is to do no development on that property. It will just stay forested and natural open space."
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