AUGUSTA, Maine - The first project to benefit from Land for Maine's Future funds is a conservation group's purchase of more than 2,700 acres in the central part of the state.
The Portland Press Herald reports that Plum Creek Timber Co. agreed to sell five tracts of land in Embden, Burnham, Detroit and Ripley to The Trust for Public Land. The trust is transferring the land to the state to be added to Maine's wildlife management systems.
A total of $500,000 from Land for Maine's Future helped finance the $1.9 million project. The project is the first to get a piece of $2.2 million in bonds that had been frozen by Gov. Paul LePage. Environmental groups had criticized LePage's decision to delay release of the bonds, which were approved by voters.