Basin Preserve Map (basinmap.pdf) The Nature Conservancy in Maine Press Releases Search All Press Releases Margaret Pizer The Nature Conservancy (207) 729-5181 mpizer@tnc.org

Stunning Midcoast Land Gift

Nature Conservancy Receives 1,910-acre parcel in Phippsburg

PHIPPSBURG, MAINE—3 October 2006— An anonymous donor has given The Nature Conservancy 1,910 acres in the midcoast town of Phippsburg. One of the largest unprotected parcels on the Maine coast, the land’s diverse topography ranges from hemlock gorges and pitch pine ridges to over four miles of shoreline surrounding The Basin, a saltwater inlet on the New Meadows River popular with boaters. With rising land values on the Maine coast, the parcel, which is estimated to be worth between $10 and $14 million, is expected to appraise as one of the most valuable gifts of land donated to the Conservancy anywhere in the world in its 55-year history—and by far the most valuable land gift to the Conservancy in Maine. 

“This is an act of staggering generosity,” said Mike Tetreault, Executive Director of The Nature Conservancy in Maine. “Whether you look at the four miles of shorebird and waterfowl habitat or the hundreds of upland acres with intact forests, the wildlife and recreational values are outstanding. We are humbled and grateful for the trust the donor has placed in us.”

With the gift in hand, the Conservancy will now raise $750,000 for a stewardship endowment for the newly-named Basin Preserve. This will provide funds to manage natural resources on the preserve, including steep hemlock gorges and unusual pitch pine forests perched on rock outcrops along Fuller Mountain and Pasture Ridge. The funds will also help maintain access for public recreational use, including hunting and fishing. A high priority is being placed on maintaining access for local clam harvesters who depend upon the rich mudflats along the shore.

“We look forward to a long and mutually beneficial relationship with the Phippsburg community,” said Tetreault. “In addition to working with shellfish harvesters and recreational interests, the Conservancy plans to work with the Town of Phippsburg to explore the feasibility of making a limited amount of land available for school expansion. Clearly, by accepting this preserve, The Nature Conservancy is accepting the substantial responsibility of managing it in a way that both conserves its wonderful natural resources and provides good public access. Those are both worthy goals. The conversations we’ve had with members of the community underscore the fact that protecting this land is an important way of protecting the rural character and cultural history of the town. ”

Phippsburg First Selectman Alan Douglass said “We are excited that this area of Phippsburg will remain undeveloped and that The Nature Conservancy will be working with the Town to continue the traditional uses of this area and to manage it safely and effectively.  We look forward to a strong and productive relationship between the Town of Phippsburg and The Nature Conservancy.”

At 1,910 acres, the property is now the largest protected parcel in the Kennebec Estuary (for comparison, nearby Popham Beach State Park is 530 acres and Reid State Park 800 acres). The donation increases the amount of the estuary under conservation to nearly 13,000 acres and 120 miles of water front. The property is among the largest unfragmented forest blocks in the midcoast region. The Basin Preserve includes valuable shorebird habitat and areas where black ducks are able to spend the winter (known as over wintering areas). It is also the site of some of the state’s earliest settlements (nearby Popham Colony was settled in 1607) with four historic graveyards within its borders.

In the 1940s, the New Meadows River, and the Basin specifically, were the world’s largest quahog producer. Today the Basin produces some 52 bushels per acre – twice the norm.

The Nature Conservancy is a member of the Maine Wetlands Protection Coalition, an innovative partnership of public and private entities that has worked since 1992 to protect high value habitat in the Kennebec Estuary. The Coalition has permanently protected more than 11,000 acres within the estuary, and this gift brings the total area of protection to nearly 13,000 acres.

Midcoast Maine’s Kennebec Estuary is one of the nation’s largest and most important tidal ecosystems for fish and wildlife resources. The estuary faces ever-increasing development pressures, as more residential and second homes are built along Maine’s coast, damaging the fragile habitat and threatening a way of life. Inappropriate recreational use and non-native species also pose significant threats to the habitat and wildlife.

“The Kennebec Estuary is comparable to the other big East Coast Estuaries, including the Hudson and Chesapeake, in terms of importance for wildlife,” said Tetreault. “Virtually every species of waterfowl found in the Atlantic Flyway—from brant to bluebill—can be found in the area during breeding, migrating and over-wintering periods.”

Merrymeeting Bay and the Lower Kennebec River system combine to make up the Kennebec Estuary. It is the largest tidal estuary on the East Coast north of the Hudson and drains five rivers. Containing over 20% of Maine’s tidal marshes, this system provides critical habitat for several endangered and threatened species, including nesting osprey and eagles, short-nosed sturgeon, piping plover, and least and roseate terns. A variety of globally rare plants also have populations in the estuary, including Parker’s pipewort (Eriocaulon parkeri) and Long’s bitter-cress (Cardamine longii).

Conservation priorities in the estuary include habitat for migratory fish, undeveloped shoreline for bald eagle nesting and roosting, intact beaches and dunes, freshwater and saltwater tidal marshes, and the upland forests that buffer these shoreline ecosystems and provide habitat for a variety of songbirds, mammals and more. These conservation properties also provide recreational opportunities, including fishing, hunting, and hiking, and protect clam flats, drinking water and community-based agriculture.