How Chesuncook Became the Maine State Soil

The effort to establish a Maine State Soil by legislative decree began many years ago as informal conversations among soil and other natural resource scientists in Maine.  In 1994 a small group of individuals met in Orono to begin to discuss a formal effort to establish a Maine State Soil.  The intent was to join an emerging national trend to identify state soils.  The official state soil then serves as a talking point becoming a tool for educational purposes, to bolster public pride in our rich natural resource base in Maine, and to call attention to issues related to soil resources that may be critical to assure the quality of life we enjoy in Maine for many generations to come.

The group assembled in 1994 included representatives of the Maine Agricultural and Forest Experiment Station, the Maine Association of Professional Soil Scientists, the Maine Department of Agriculture, the University of Maine, the USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service (or Soil Conservation Service as it was called at the time), Maine Soil and Water Conservation Districts, and the private sector.  What emerged was a survey that was distributed to practicing soil scientists and other soil and water conservation professionals throughout the state of Maine.  The purpose of the survey was to determine (a) if there was interest and support in establishing a state soil for Maine, and (b) what soil type should be selected.

From these survey data, and numerous meetings and discussions, it was clear that there was wide support to establish a Maine State Soil.  In addition, the Chesuncook soil series was supported by a strong majority of the participants in the survey process.  The following key points summarize the rationale for this selection.

• The Chesuncook soil series is derived from "glacial till", the most common type of parent material (material from which the soil is made) in Maine.
• The Chesuncook soil series is one of the most widely distributed soil types in Maine.
• The Chesuncook soil series is "controlled" by the Natural Resource Conservation Service in Maine.  That means no other state can change the Chesuncook soil series by changes in their own taxonomic criteria.  The Chesuncook soil was first identified in Maine, and anything influencing its future taxonomy is under Maine control.  Many soils found in Maine were first identified in other states, and therefore those states ultimately control the future of those soil types.
• The Chesuncook soil series is a relatively productive soil having good texture and drainage qualities.
• The Chesuncook soil series draws its name from native American descriptions of converging water bodies, as does the Maine lake by the same name.  Henry David Thoreau wrote of the lake Chesuncook and its surroundings in "The Maine Woods".  Therefore the Chesuncook soil series has the added benefit of a name that shares in this rich literary and natural resource history.
• The Chesuncook soil series is A SOIL!, and regardless of the specific soil name, the most important achievement in establishing an official state soil is in the educational and public awareness objectives this will help attain.

  The establishment of The Chesuncook Soil Series as the Maine State Soil was signed into law on April 16, 1999 by then Governor Angus King Jr. and resides in Maine State Statute, Chapter 9, subchapter 1, section 222.

Pictured left to right, State Senator Mary Cathcart, Governor Angus King Jr., Professor Ivan Fernandez, State Representative Kassie Stevens.

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