Maine Water, Coastal Mountains Land Trust protect more watershed land

Maine Water and the Coastal Mountains Land Trust  celebrated a decade of working together Sept. 18 by announcing an agreement to add another 29 acres on Spruce Mountain to the more than 1,500 acres of open space on Maine’s Midcoast that the two organizations have already protected.

Maine Water also presented the land trust with a $10,000 donation to fund the group’s continued conservation work.

“One of our top priorities, by necessity, is the high quality of the drinking water that we deliver to Maine families,” said Mark Vannoy, President of Maine Water, in a Sept. 25 news release. “Through our partnership with the CMLT we secured this water supply in perpetuity, for those who follow us. We’ve found the land trust to be an ideal partner, not only for the purpose of protecting the area’s drinking water, but also for making the land available for light recreation so that families can get out and enjoy our incredible natural resources.”

At a ceremony held Sept. 18 at the Ragged Mountain Thorndike Brook Trailhead, Coastal Mountains Land Trust Executive Director Ian Stewart noted Maine Water’s decision about a decade ago to partner on conservation initiatives, rather than sell land the company had been acquiring since the late 1800s.

“There was an ethic on both sides of the conversation to say this is an opportunity to do something different than just sell this land off,” Steward said. “We live in an extraordinarily beautiful place, and there’s an opportunity still here to see that some of the most special places in our community are set aside.”

During the ceremony, Vannoy reminisced about how he reluctantly entertained his son’s suggestion a couple of years ago that the two of them take a January hike to the top of Ragged Mountain to watch the sunrise. Temperatures were in the single digits. 

“It was well worth the effort,” Vannoy said. “It is just great to see the beauty of this place, and we’ve preserved that for generations to come.” 

The partnership between Maine Water and the Coastal Mountains Land Trust permanently protected Mirror Lake and Grassy Pond, important sources of drinking water for six coastal communities. Maine Water employees also regularly donate time and effort to maintain trails on the properties. On Friday, more than 20 volunteers associated with the company spent the morning working with land trust staff maintaining trails around Ragged Mountain.