AMC’s Guiding Principles

Throughout the process of evaluating and responding to Plum Creek's Concept Plan, AMC has been guided by the following set of principles:

1. Conservation must be permanent and must be on a scale commensurate with the size of the region and the size of proposed development.
2. The remote and undeveloped character of the region must be maintained as the region’s primary asset. The Maine Woods is the last large-scale wild place in the East.
3. The public must be able to access and enjoy the natural, scenic, and recreational assets of the region. Development must not lead to “privatization” of these resources.
4. Long-term planning and predictability are critical to ensuring the on-going economic vitality of local communities. Any development must reflect the values of local communities, and its primary economic benefits must accrue locally.
5. Development should be contiguous to existing development, maximizing the economic benefits and minimizing the infrastructure costs to local communities.
6. Protection of remaining recreation corridors that provide high-quality multi-day waterway and forest backcountry trips, an extremely limited resource today, is paramount.
7. To fulfill the objectives of Maine’s “Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy,” the most ecologically important areas must be protected.
8. An appropriate balance between the economic benefits to landowners seeking to develop, and economic benefits to the people of Maine must be provided.