Useful Publications
2023 Annual Report
Take a look at KELT's 2023 Annual report - an overview of the land trust’s annual achievements and successes.
Breakdown of KELT financial standing in 2023 (audited)
List of volunteers
Stats from KELT's education, stewardship, land protection, restoration, and citizen science programs
Pictures from public programs and volunteer events
2024 Interim Strategic Plan
You can also contact the KELT office, 207-442-8400, to receive a copy by mail.
A next step along the trail…
As 2023 drew to a close so did KELT’s current Strategic Plan, which inspired and guided our work beginning in 2019. And so the KELT Board embarks once again to reflect on our progress and craft a new Strategic Plan!
This interim plan includes:
Accomplishments from the 2019 - 2023 Strategic Plan
Goals we’ve set to accomplish in 2024
The pathway to craft a new Strategic Plan covering the years of 2025-2030
Strategic Plan 2019-2023
It focuses KELT’s work around the following goals:
Land Protection: Increase conserved lands in high priority areas throughout the Kennebec Estuary.
Stewardship: Take care of KELT’s conserved lands and act as a steward of the greater land and water resources of the Estuary.
Education & Engagement: Help people of all ages discover the wonders of the Kennebec Estuary, inspire the next generation of conservationists, and build meaningful collaborations with allies across the Kennebec Estuary region.
Organization Stability: Build financial and organizational capacity to meet the goals of the strategic plan and sustain the mission for the long term.
Guided by our new Strategic Plan, encouraged by the support and engagement of our community, and fueled by tremendous opportunities, our land trust is poised to accomplish greater conservation and restoration of the Estuary’s most valuable places.
The Kennebec Estuary Report
Representing a link between Gulf of Maine waters and those draining nearly 8,000 square miles of uplands in Maine and New Hampshire, the Kennebec Estuary is at once a unique assemblage of ecological attributes, a resource of economic, cultural, and social value, and a region of historical significance. The complex interactions among the many components of this system—including those linking people with the environmental goods and services they have historically desired, expected, and needed—have made successful stewardship of the estuary especially challenging.
Commissioned by KELT, this 100 page report was made possible with support by the Merrymeeting Bay Trust and Biological Conservation.
The report was researched and written by Slade Moore of Biological Conservation and Jaret Reblin of Bowdoin College, and completed in 2010.
It is available as PDF files by chapter.
Kennebec Estuary Barrier Survey
The Kennebec Barrier Survey was organized in 2010 to survey barriers to fish passage such as culverts in the lower Kennebec River watershed as part of the statewide effort to inventory fish passage barriers and to prioritize fish and habitat restoration projects.
3 Key Objectives of the Survey:
(1) Survey about 400 road-stream crossings and dams in the lower Kennebec River watershed
(2) Create GIS layers that will be part of the statewide barrier database. State Database: Maine Stream Habitat Viewer
(3) Initiate action to pursue restoration projects.
Nequasset Fish Ladder – Woolwich
The first phase of implementation is underway through KELT’s participation in the restoration of the fish ladder at Nequasset Brook. Because of the active stakeholder base and amount of suitable alewife habitat above this site, the ladder at Nequasset Dam was selected as the #1 priority for improvement. Fisheries experts estimate that with proper management and improved passage, this site can support 400,000 fish.
Sewall Pond Culvert – Arrowsic
Regional Agricultural Maps
Realizing the importance of local farms to the health of the local environment and local residents – both the people and the wildlife – the Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust and the Kennebec Estuary Land Trust have partnered to create Local Farms-Local Food, a regional initiative to enhance farmland protection and raise awareness of local food production.
The BTLT and KELT have formed a strong regional partnership to enhance the local food economy, raise awareness of the benefits of local food, and increase farmland conservation in the southern Midcoast region.