BETHEL — The Forest Society of Maine and the Northeast Wilderness Trust finalized the purchase Thursday of the Grafton Forest Conservation Project in western Maine.

The two groups jointly raised $10.7 million in private funds to finalize the purchase of the 21,000 acres.

The area, which borders the state-owned Mahoosuc Unit, the Appalachian Trail and Grafton Notch State Park, fills in a gap in the conservation corridor from the western Maine mountains to the New Hampshire border in Oxford County.

That area is known for its spectacular scenery and remote hiking opportunities.

“The Grafton Forest easement brings permanent conservation to a working forest that supports local economies, provides important fish and wildlife habitat, and hosts well-known recreation destinations,” Karin Tilberg, president and CEO of Forest Society of Maine said in a statement. “The area is known as the ‘people’s backyard’ and it will now remain a forest forever.”

A section of the conserved Grafton forestlands falls within the federally authorized acquisition boundary for the Umbagog National Wildlife Refuge.

“The Grafton conservation project, a truly collaborative effort, has helped us meet our conservation objectives for the refuge, benefiting fish, wildlife, and the woods we all cherish,” Refuge Manager Paul Casey said. “I am so pleased that the Forest Society of Maine and the Northeast Wilderness Trust have conserved the headwaters of the Swift Cambridge River, which flows through Umbagog National Wildlife Refuge. This is a great example where working at a landscape scale can help achieve multiple local, state and federal goals.”

The project came about following years of working with the state Bureau of Parks and Lands and Wagner Forest Management. Forestry Society of Maine now owns a conservation easement of 15,000 acres of forest, while the Northeast Wilderness Trust holds 6,045 acres of critical watershed and habitat that will be managed as wilderness.

The easement allows for forest management and protection of identified natural resources and habitats. It also permanently conserves public access, including two Appalachian Trail side trails — Notch Trail and Speck Pond Trail — and ensures permanent public vehicular access on the road that leads to them. Access to these trails is important not only for hikers, but for trail maintenance and search and rescue.

“The Grafton Forest Conservation Project will protect important wildlife habitat, assure sustainable forest management, maintain important multiuse recreational trails, and improve public access to some of the state’s best recreational areas, including a rugged stretch of the Appalachian Trail and the Mahoosuc Public Land Unit,” Gov. Janet Mills said. “I thank the Forest Society of Maine and Northeast Wilderness Trust for continuing Maine’s proud history of conservation and environmental stewardship. The state will continue to do all we can to support public and private partnerships like these that protect our precious natural resources for the benefit of all Maine people.”

Essential funding for the purchase included leadership grants from the Appalachian Trail Conservancy Wild East Action Fund, Bailey Wildlife Foundation, The Betterment Fund, The EJK Foundation, Maine Community Foundation Funds, Open Space Institute’s Appalachian Landscapes Protection Fund, Sweet Water Trust and The Nature Conservancy.

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