MFS: Strong man settles forest practices violations
AUGUSTA - The Maine Forest Service (MFS), under the Maine Department of Conservation, has entered into an agreement with Tracy Gordon of Strong which resolves a violation of the state’s forest practices law on land he owned in Jay.
Improper harvest operations on Gordon’s property resulted in a clearcut that did not have a harvest plan prepared by a licensed forester prior to the harvest or adequate separation zone, as required by the state’s forest-practices rules governing the size, arrangement, and management of clearcuts.
Under the settlement agreement, Gordon agreed to pay an $8,933 civil penalty and is required to work under the supervision of a licensed forester on future harvests.
The investigation and settlement negotiations were led by Regional Enforcement Coordinator Jim Ecker and carried out by Maine Forest Service foresters and forest rangers. He said that Gordon told MFS that he did not intend to create a clearcut.
“Gordon was very cooperative and took full responsibility for the violation,” Ecker said.
“These types of violations often result from inadequate harvest planning and supervision,” Ecker continued. “When landowners harvest to the minimum requirements of the Forest Practices Act but fail to leave adequate residual trees combined with wide, closely spaced harvesting trails, it can result in the unintentional creation of clearcuts and forest practices law violations.”
“Our goal is to improve the management of Maine’s forests,” Doug Denico, Maine Forest Service director, said. “Our agency focuses on educating and informing landowners to reduce the possibility of such violations. When violations do occur, however, we have a responsibility to uphold the law. We take this and our other responsibilities very seriously.”
Established in 1891, the Maine Forest Service has as its mission to protect and enhance Maine’s state's forest resources through forest fire prevention; technical assistance; education and outreach to a wide variety of audiences; and enforcement of the state’s forest protection laws.
Entries(RSS)
What, no dirty mugshot with the article??
"When violations do occur, however, we have a responsibility to uphold the law. We take this and our other responsibilities very seriously.”
Obviously. Too bad these burglaries or a 4th D.U.I violation weren't handled with the same vigor as dropping a few extra trees on privately owned land.
Dirty mug-shot?? I hope this wasn't an offense that would require ANY type of mug-shot.
Does not sound like a criminal act to me??? a violation and fine, and obviousily some damage to a good man's reputation. I'm not surprised he fessed up and did what he could to make things right. That's the type of person he is. It's too bad to read a headline/ long article in regards to this. It's sad to read about a hard working, respectable business man running into this sort of situation.
To Jeesh- I believe that when Eric made the "dirty mug shot" comment he was using what we call sarcasm.
Recently my husband waited 5 weeks for a response from the State regarding his harvest plan. When we called to inquire as to the cause of the delay we were told that they couldn't find it in their system. Luckily we had the temporary number with us to resolve the issue without further delay. Unlike Tracy Gordon, we don't have 2 dozen or so local employees depending on us to provide work so they can feed their kids and keep their homes out of foreclosure.
thanks for the clarification Keith I thought I sensed some sarcasm
If you feel the article and response to an unintended clear cut is so disproportionate to the response given to break-ins and DUIs, let us not forget that poor land management affects everyone. Agencies like MFS were developed because without an organized body to regulate and *enforce* these laws, the human individual is too often preoccupied with meeting his immediate needs without considering the long term consequences.
One example of note: the dust bowl
An article like this seems likely to be meant to spread awareness of a problem in a state where so many folks harvest wood on their own property. "Our agency focuses on educating and informing landowners to reduce the possibility of such violations." And that seems like a good idea to me.
The first saw mill was built in York County nearly 500 years ago. We have managed to maintain our forest land (one of the greatest in this Nation) without MFS until the last few decades. If you feel that Maine's forests are in danger, I would like to invite you to the Presidential Lookout, a place where you can see thousands of acres of nothing but trees. And just to clarify, the dust bowl occurred in a different climate with no topography under drought conditions.
Last summer a group of men stole a few thousand dollars worth of vehicle parts from a private landowner, having to pay a fraction of the loss in restitution. In this article, a woods crew working on behalf of their employer cut a couple thousand dollars worth of trees and the employer has to pay a multiple of that in restitution. A crime against a person is nobody's business but a crime against less than 1-millionth of the trees in Maine is everyone's business? There are irresponsible people causing the need for such regulation, however, DUIs cause thousands of deaths each year. A fact that I believe should be more concerning than cutting a house lot.
Tracy, maybe next time you shouldn't take responsibility like a man. Instead you should act like a sniveling weasel and say you couldn't understand right from wrong because your daddy beat you when you were little. It works, or atleast it did 15 years ago for a 27 year old man. Locals should know what I'm talking about.