The Nature Conservancy. Protecting nature. Preserving life.™

Next time you walk through a forest, imagine that the trees are affixed to the end of your kitchen faucet like a large green purifier, cleaning the water before it splashes, crystal-clear and cool, into your drinking glass.

It’s hard to think of it that way; a natural forest is a messy thing, a chaotic jumble of plants and animals. But the civil engineers who are responsible for safe drinking water have known for years that source water flowing from forested watersheds is easier and cheaper to treat than the water that runs off city streets or agricultural fields.

“Forests are very important to water quality because their root systems take up nutrients that can spoil water quality and they hold soil together to prevent erosion,” says Tom Abello, senior policy advisor for The Nature Conservancy in Maine. “Trees provide shade that cool the water, and forested floodplains reduce flooding — in turn decreasing sediment and polluted runoff.”

In recent years, regulators have urged municipalities to pay as much attention to the water coming into their treatment plants as they do to the water leaving the plant for distribution. And Abello says that Maine is ahead of the curve because of its strong conservation ethic.

“Recent polls show that a majority of Mainers understand the importance of conservation,” says Abello. “The Land for Maine’s Future (LMF) program exemplifies those beliefs.

For 20 years, Mainers have voted overwhelmingly in support of LMF to preserve the things they cherish most — healthy families, healthy nature and quality of life.”

He points to the Mount Agamenticus region in southern Maine to illustrate LMF’s contribution. The York Water District (YWD) owns 5,000 acres of preserved forests around Chase Pond, its sole water source, and up the side of Mount A. Conservationists have built on that with some 4,000 acres of additional conservation in the area, and LMF funded the purchase of hundreds of acres within this total.

Abello says the bottom line is this: “Protection of natural resources is critical to the quality of our drinking water. The state’s investment in this approach, through LMF, helps us meet the growing challenges from development and pollution. Not only do LMF funds pay for lands outright, but they help unlock other private and federal funding opportunities.”

This state investment has paid dividends for Maine. Conserve a floodplain forest and you’ve not only protected drinking water for communities downstream, but you’ve also preserved habitat for birds, fish and other animals that rely on clean streams and healthy forests.