SNOWE, COLLINS ANNOUNCE NEARLY $9 MILLION IN FUNDING FOR MAINE IN INTERIOR APPROPRIATIONS BILL

WASHINGTON, DC – The Interior Appropriations bill as approved by the Senate Appropriations committee includes Senators Snowe and Collins’ requests for land and wildlife projects that will benefit Maine totaling $8.89 million.               “So much of Maine’s heritage, economy, and identity is based on the integrity of our state’s wilderness,” said Senators Snowe and Collins in a joint statement. “This funding will play a vital role in protecting and preserving Maine’s natural beauty and resources. We are pleased that these critical land and wildlife projects have received this much deserved financial support.”   Senators Snowe and Collins announced that the Interior Appropriations bill includes funding for the following Maine projects:   $2.5 million for the Penobscot River Restoration Project. The Penobscot River Restoration Project is a five-year, $50 million project to restore the natural flow of Maine's largest watershed.  This project is a partnership of the State of Maine, the U.S. Department of Interior, the National Park Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Penobscot Indian Nation, the Atlantic Salmon Federation, PPL Inc., the Natural Resources Council of Maine, and other environmental groups.   $500,000 for the University of Maine: Northern States Research Cooperative.  This funding, as a part of the Northern States Research Consortium (NSRC), would greatly enhance the ability to assure sustained productivity of the Acadian forest.  Specifically, it would be used to study the long-term effects of different modes of partial harvesting on growth and yield, genetic diversity of crop trees, the benefits of trying to manage for late-successional forest types, and the maintenance of biodiversity and environmental quality.  This is essential for the management of Maine’s hardwood trees to address stand improvement practices and the effects of harvesting practices on residual crop trees. The Northern States Research Consortium (NSRC) was authorized by Congress in 1998 (Public Law 105-185) to support cross disciplinary, integrative, and collaborative research on ecosystems, economic development, community development, forest products and conservation efforts to benefit the Northern Forest.   $500,000 for the Atlantic Salmon Recovery – National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. This funding, through the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, will support efforts to protect the Atlantic salmon in Maine.  The Atlantic Salmon was listed as endangered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and the National Marine Fisheries Service.    $300,000 for the City of Calais, Baring Street Sewer Upgrade for STAG             This funding will address deficiencies in the City of Calais’ sewer system.  Hydraulic overloading of the collection system and treatment plant due to excessive infiltration/inflow is a serious problem that has caused multiple violations of the Calais’ discharge permit and impacts to international receiving water.   $700,000 for the City of Presque Isle: Outfall Relocation. This State and Tribal Assistance Grant (STAG) funding will help fund the construction of a 24” diameter pipeline to redirect waste water from the Presque Isle Stream to the Aroostook River.     $2 million for the Maine Department of Conservation/Bureau of Parks and Lands, Grafton Notch             This funding will help protect 3,688 acres of forest land in the Grafton Notch region of Maine’s Mahoosuc Mountains.  Protection of the Grafton Notch property would ensure that significant recreational opportunities, including fishing, hunting, snowmobiling, cross-country skiing, hiking, and camping, will continue to be available to the public in an extremely popular area of the state.  The Grafton Notch Forest Legacy Project was the number one ranked Forest Legacy project in the nation this year.   $2.39 million for Acadia National Park             This funding will help provide for much needed rehabilitation of the Park’s sewage system.     The bill will now go to the full Senate for its consideration. ###