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Nature Conservancy’s Upper St. John River

Forestlands Certified

Conservation group enrolls 180,000 acres in

northern Maine with Forest Stewardship Council

BRUNSWICK — 180,000 acres of The Nature Conservancy’s ownership along the Upper St. John River have been certified under the sustainable forestry guidelines of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). The third-party certification ensures the Conservancy’s timber management meets responsible harvesting guidelines and protects native plants and animals, the conservation organization announced today.

“Our goal is to demonstrate that we can protect wildlife and biological diversity, manage timber and provide opportunities for traditional recreational access,” said Kyle Stockwell, Assistant Director of Science and Stewardship. “FSC certification is an important step in that process.”

The FSC certification process, led by SmartWood Director Richard Donovan, included detailed review of the Conservancy’s forest management plan, including on-the-ground inspection of timber harvests, interviews with community members and timber harvesting contractors, and ongoing annual audits of the property's management. Following an exhaustive scientific inventory of the property, the Conservancy designated some 45,000 acres as ecological reserve land protecting sensitive wildlife habitat. The Conservancy contracts with Huber Resources Corporation to sustainably manage the balance, some 135,000 acres, for timber products. All of the property is open to the public for traditional recreational uses.

“We applaud The Nature Conservancy’s addition of 180,000 acres to Maine lands that are third-party certified as sustainably managed. Maine is the national leader in certification, with more land certified than any other state. Management of The Nature Conservancy’s St. John lands demonstrates that forest protection and active management to produce wood products are not mutually exclusive,” said Governor John E. Baldacci, who announced last October an initiative to certify some 10 million acres of forestland in Maine by 2007.

The FSC third-party certification team consisted of foresters and ecologists from SmartWood, the forest certification program of the Rainforest Alliance.  Founded in 1989, SmartWood is the oldest and most extensive certification program in the world, having certified more than 1,000 operations and 30 million acres worldwide.  SmartWood's purpose is to improve the effectiveness of sustainable forestry in conserving biodiversity, providing equity for local communities, fair treatment to workers, and creating incentives for businesses so that they can benefit economically from responsible forestry practices.

In 1998, The Nature Conservancy initially purchased 185,000 acres along 40 miles of the upper St. John River from International Paper for $35 million. Since that time, a series of separate transactions and land consolidations have extended the Conservancy’s protection along the river to nearly 80 miles and increased total ownership to 188,000 acres.

Aside from the Upper St. John River forestlands, The Nature Conservancy previously enrolled 6,000 acres in western Maine under the certification guidelines of FSC. The land, known as the Bear Paw land, is managed by Two Trees Forestry out of Winthrop and provides important habitat for deer, moose, fisher and bobcat.