Washington, D.C.--U.S. Senator Susan Collins, a senior member of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee, announced that she secured $725,000 for the Maine Mineral & Gem Museum (MMGM) in Bethel as part of the Fiscal Year 2023 Commerce, Justice, Science Appropriations bill. The funding will be used to purchase equipment to study lithium and other minerals as well as to develop educational programs for K-12 students.
The omnibus funding package passed the Senate by a vote of 68-29 and now heads to the House before heading to the President’s desk to be signed into law.
“The Maine Mineral & Gem Museum is home to a wide array of geologic marvels, from the Maine state gemstone, tourmaline, to the largest pieces of the Moon and Mars on Earth,” said Senator Collins. “This funding will help students across the region to access this educational asset. Additionally, this project will help researchers determine whether Maine’s abundant supply of lithium-rich pegmatites could help power our clean energy future.”
“This investment of federal funds secured by Senator Collins will amplify the museum’s scientific and educational reach,” said MMGM executive director Jessica Siraco. “We are grateful for this opportunity to combine this funding with our research capabilities to
positively impact our State and community.”
The MMGM aims to maximize the impact of the Museum’s research and programming to build, broaden and deepen its service to the community and state.
One of the goals this funding will support is to provide opportunities for all teachers and students from K-12 in Oxford County to visit the MMGM and inspire students to consider careers in research and science.
This funding will also support the purchase of state-of-the-art instrumentation to study the lithium resource potential of Maine pegmatites. Lithium is an essential component of batteries and is in high demand for hybrid and electric cars. New and reliable instrumentation will attract students and increase the MMGM’s stature and visibility among a broader audience through its research and developing educational programs.
+++
Western Maine boasts a long history of mineral and gem discoveries and Bethel is central to some of the area’s most historic pegmatite quarries. Their legacies and the preservation here in Maine of its minerals, gems, and mining history is the inspiration behind the museum.
The MMGM opened in 2019 and holds the largest permanent collection of Maine minerals, gems, fossils and more of the Moon than in all the natural history museums in the world combined.
###