U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King and Representatives Chellie Pingree and Jared Golden announced today that the U.S. Department of Agriculture is investing up to $385 million in nine projects that will benefit Maine’s forest products and agriculture industries while helping to combat climate change.

The grants, which were awarded under the Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities funding opportunity, will be used to support pilot programs that will create market opportunities for American commodities produced using climate-smart production practices. These initial projects will expand markets for climate-smart commodities; leverage the greenhouse gas benefits of climate-smart commodity production; and provide direct, meaningful benefits to production agriculture, including for small and underserved producers.

“By supporting innovative and environmentally friendly logging and farming practices as well as expanding market opportunities, this funding is a win-win for producers as well as our climate,” said Senators Collins and King and Representatives Pingree and Golden in a joint statement.  “We are particularly pleased that USDA is investing in two projects that are being spearheaded in Maine.  This funding will allow Wolfe’s Neck Farm to launch an initiative to help farmers implement climate-smart techniques and access the marketplace for climate-smart commodities.  Moreover, this funding will benefit our forest products industry by supporting the New England Forestry Foundation’s effort to help landowners and loggers improve forest health and market locally-grown, healthy, low-carbon building materials.  In addition to mitigating the impact of climate change, these projects will provide substantial economic benefits to our rural communities.”

Two of the projects with a direct impact on Maine include: 

“We are grateful to the Maine Delegation for their support of our project,” said Alec Giffen with the New England Forestry Foundation.  “In our view, this is a transformational opportunity to pay landowners and loggers for practices that will both mitigate climate change and improve productivity of the land while benefitting wildlife.”

Funding for other projects that cover multiple states, including Maine, and will support Maine farmers include: