Green Lake Conservation Easement
Ellsworth, ME | 1,921 acres |
The Green Lake conservation easement protects a landscape of water features, from wetland complexes and brooks to a pond and lake shoreline. The property includes 2,000 feet of shoreline on Green Lake, a glacial lake stretching through the towns of Ellsworth and Dedham, and the full shoreline of Big Pond. Several streams which flow into Green Lake and the Union River also pass through this property, including Boggy Brook.
Green Lake is one of only four lakes in Maine that support a population of native landlocked Atlantic salmon, and is home to the southernmost population of Arctic Char. The Green Lake easement also protects 255 acres of wetlands surrounding Gilpatrick Brook and Big Pond—wetlands that provide critical habitat for inland wading birds, waterfowl, and other wildlife, including moose, coyote, and beaver. The property is also an important stopover point for migratory birds during their journey north.
The forests here are mostly young, having been repeatedly cut by the previous landowner, and will now have the chance to grow old. Black spruce and tamarack predominate, while shrubs like leatherleaf, highbush blueberry, and small cranberry. As these ecosystems benefit from forever-wild protection, they will store more carbon and reach greater levels of ecological complexity.
Whalesback Conservation Easements
Aurora, ME | 3,307 acres |
Named for the eponymous glacial esker that runs alongside the Easement, the Whalesback forever-wild lands are mostly forested, with about a quarter comprising open water and wetlands. The forests are low in elevation, many of them wet.
The Easements protect some of the Union River’s headwaters: six miles of its Middle Branch, more than two miles of Beaver Brook, nearly three miles of Sevenmile Brook, plus 910 acres of wetlands. These waters provide exceptional wildlife habitat for inland waterfowl, wading birds, brook trout, and many other wide-ranging species.
While there are no trails, the land is open for backcountry exploration. Hunting of abundant prey species and fishing are permitted; the primary access to the land is State-owned boat launch on Route 9 along the Middle Branch of the Union River.
The forever-wild designation means that the forest will be shaped by natural and ecological processes, rather than management or forestry. Over time, the young forest on the land will mature, eventually regaining old-growth status.
