Forestry has been central to the northern Maine economy since the first European settlers arrived. In fact, Maine's first sawmill, powered by water, was built at South Berwick in 1634. By 1832, Bangor was the largest shipping port for lumber in the world, exporting more than 8.7 billion board feet of lumber between 1832 and 1888.

Maine's lumber industry relied on hardy crews of 12-14 men and a team of oxen, living in crude camps constructed of spruce logs chinked with moss and mud, built around a fire pit for cooking and warmth. The men worked all winter long, living on four meals a day of flapjacks, pickled beef, boiled codfish, beans, sourdough biscuits and strong tea.

Each spring, when the ice on the rivers thawed, the previous winter's harvest was floated southward to the mills in Maine's famous log drives. The hardy woodsmen used axes and peaveys, brute strength and also dynamite to keep the logs flowing along the frigid waterways.

Today, logging roads and trucks have replaced the log drives, and modern loggers enjoy safer and more comfortable working conditions. However, logging is still integral to the Maine economy. In fact, in 2001 the pulp and paper industry paid $686 million in wages, provided 13,200 jobs and accounted for 24.2 percent of manufacturing wages in Maine, according to the Maine Pulp and Paper Association.

Furthermore, timber industry workers typically earn wages today that are well above the median income in Maine, taking home an average annual income of $52,208.

Plum Creek was the first in the nation to practice sustainable forestry in accordance with the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) Standards. The timber industry has been integral to the economic vitality of Maine communities for more than 200 years, and it still is today.

Plum Creek's plan is designed to ensure a strong future for sustainable forestry in the Moosehead region by keeping land parcels together and protecting the working forest.

To learn more about how Plum Creek's plan supports sustainable forestry, please visit the Economic Prosperity section of this website or just click on the following link: The Working Forest