The Maine Warden Service is responsible for landowner relations at DIF&W, and they recently posted an update on their work with and for private landowners. Here is their report:
We would like to take an opportunity and introduce the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife’s Landowner Relations and Keep Maine Clean Programs, which is led by Corporals Rick LaFlamme and Dave Chabot.
The focus of the Landowner Relations Program is to assist private landowners with nuisance wildlife, illegal dumping and littering, misuse of their private property, property damage, and to educate user groups about landowner expectations. We work to prioritize the landowner’s concerns and address their issues quickly with the assistance of MDIFW staff and other State agencies and volunteers.
The Keep Maine Clean program exist to help with the cleanup and disposal of litter that was illegally dumped. We provide this service by partnering with the Maine Forest Service and other agencies, municipalities, corporate sponsors like Kittery Trading Post, Waste Management, BDS Tire Disposal Company, and hundreds of volunteers through organized clubs. We have collectively cleaned up over a million pounds of illegally dumped trash from private and public property within the last five years.
These programs exist with the goal to secure Maine’s outdoor recreation and use of private lands for future generations. We can preserve this longstanding tradition with continued enforcement, education and awareness.
Whether you’re a landowner looking for information on your rights and liabilities, an outdoor user new to Maine and its unique landowner laws, or a Mainer who cares about preserving access to the wild outdoors, we’re here to help.
Please contact us any time!
Sincerely,
Corporal Rick LaFlamme
(207) 287-5240
rick.laflamme@maine.gov
Corporal Dave Chabot
(207) 287-5240
dave.chabot@maine.gov
You can learn more about opportunities to enjoy private land here
https://www.maine.gov/ifw/programs-resources/landowner-relations/exploring-private-land.html
Check out the Outdoor Partner program here:
https://www.maine.gov/ifw/programs-resources/landowner-relations/get-involved.html
Maine has a strong law protecting private landowners who allow the public to use their land. You can learn about that here:
https://www.maine.gov/ifw/programs-resources/landowner-relations/opening-land.html