Maine has less government-owned land than most states.
According to Mark DesMeules of the Land for Maine's Future Program, just under one million acres of Maine land specifically designated for conservation and recreation purposes are state and federally owned. Notable is Baxter State Park, which encompasses 204,000 acres. There is no denying the warm public desire to prevent development or destruction of land that ought to be conserved. The question is whether removing such land from private ownership is the best way to do it. Neither the state nor the federal government are free of debt.