BANGOR DAILY NEWS • March 3, 2023
Our natural assets not only make Maine unique and are the basis of our prized quality of life, but they drive our economy. We need the state’s natural resource agencies to be fully staffed with the best available talent and fully funded to carry out their important work. When that work goes smoothly, we breathe clean air, drink clean water, enjoy safe and abundant seafood, recreate in our state parks and public lands, hunt, fish, and birdwatch, and eat healthy local foods. Lawmakers should prioritize Maine’s extraordinary natural assets—our air, land, water, plants, and wildlife—and the people who ensure that they will remain clean and abundant well into the future. ~ Cynthia Phinney, Maine Labor Climate Council; Eliza Townsend, Appalachian Mountain Club