Tributary Land Returns (Wabanaki, Maine)

What happened

Tributary Land Returns is a collaboration between five Wabanaki tribes and non-Indigenous conservation groups in Maine. The Bangor Daily News, in a July 6, 2026 report, describes an eight-year, $50 million effort to return 50,000 acres in 11 distinct parcels to the tribes: the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians, the Mi'kmaq Nation, the Passamaquoddy Tribe at Motahkomikuk, the Passamaquoddy Tribe at Sipayik and the Penobscot Nation. The 11 parcels were affirmed by the Wabanaki Commission on Land and Stewardship.

Six projects were complete as of that report. They include 1,327 acres for the Houlton Band and about 3,400 acres near Bridgewater for the Mi'kmaq Nation. The Conservation Fund's Tom Duffus said Indigenous land return projects are a cornerstone of its conservation efforts. First Light, a group of non-Indigenous organizations, brings partners together and raises funds; its core staff member Brett Ciccotelli said the project is about halfway through. The partner groups include The Nature Conservancy of Maine, Trust for Public Land, Maine Coast Heritage Trust, the Appalachian Mountain Club, the Forest Society of Maine and The Conservation Fund.

Parcels still in process include land at the mouth of the Kennebec River, forest land for the Passamaquoddy on the south branch of the Penobscot River, a parcel of more than 30,000 acres for the Penobscot Nation for new access to Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument, and a Passamaquoddy portion along a traditional canoe route. Maine Public calls it one of the largest returns of private land in U.S. history.

Good to know. The 50,000 acres and $50 million are goals; no total for acres returned so far has been published.

Summarized with AI assistance from 4 sources and checked against their words; not yet reviewed by historians or by the nations. Report an error