Home - Research Programs & Facilities

Maine is one of the country’s premiere locations to study forestry and nature-based recreation and tourism. Ninety percent of the state is forested—the highest percentage in the nation. Reflecting the importance of forests to the state, our campus has state-of-the-art academic and research programs to ensure the sustainability of forests and their many uses.

Acadian Forest Ecosystem Research Project

The Acadian Forest Ecosystem Research Program (AFERP) was initiated in 1993 to investigate the ecological effects of silviculture methods inspired by patterns of natural disturbance in the Acadian forest.  Since its inception, AFERP scientists have been engaged in multi-disciplinary research examining the influence of expanding-gap methods on a variety of ecological responses, including: forest stand dynamics, understory vegetation, downed woody debris (DWD), songbirds, amphibians, arthropods, and epiphytes.

AEWC Advanced Structures and Composites Center

An internationally known center of excellence for research and product development of wood composites and structural materials, with in-house capacity to meet market demands from concept to development, and testing to commercialization. AEWC personnel include more than 100 graduate and undergraduate student researchers.

Center for Research on Sustainable Forests

Formed to serve as an information clearing house for forest scientists and the public, the CRSF compliments UMaine’s School of Forest Resources, houses the Cooperative Forestry Research Unit, and has over 30 cooperating faculty members across the University. Additionally, the Center is part of the Northeastern States Research Cooperative – a competitive grants program that funds research on the 26-million-acre Northern Forests, which covers much of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and New York.

Cooperative Forestry Research Unit

The CFRU is one of the oldest forest land-owner cooperatives in the nation, offering a direct working relationship between UMaine and 8.4 million acres of private forest land. CFRU conducts applied research to provide Maine’s policy makers and forest landowners with the information needed to ensure both sustainable forest management and effective public policy.

Forest Bioproducts Research Initiative

Created in 2005, the FBRI is an interdisciplinary research initiative that seeks to create the building blocks of a “bioeconomy” both here in Maine and around the world. Using forest-based materials to create biofuels and a wide range of industrial and consumer products typically derived from fossil fuels, FBRI is on the cutting-edge of the transition to a sustainable global economy.

Maine Agricultural & Forest Experiment Station

The Maine Agricultural and Forest Experiment Station is an important center for research in agriculture, forest resources, aquaculture, and rural economic development.

Maine Image Analysis Laboratory

The Maine Image Analysis Laboratory is a research facility for the application of satellite remote sensing and geographic information systems to natural resources management. Housed in the School of Forest Resources at the University of Maine, the laboratory maintains facilities for digital image processing, geographic information analysis, and air photo interpretation.

Maine’s Sustainability Solutions Initiative

Supported by a $20 million National Science Foundation grant, this project will bring together researchers from across Maine’s universities, as well as government, industry and community stakeholders, to improve the science and practice of sustainable development. Initial efforts will focus on problems related to urbanization, forest management and climate change. To address these multifaceted problems, the research team includes more than 30 faculty members with diverse expertise.

University Forests

The University Forest Office is responsible for coordinating research, education and recreational activities on 13,000 acres of forest owned by UMaine and the University of Maine Foundation. Included is the Dwight B. Demeritt Forest – a 2,000-acre forest adjoining campus, and the Penobscot Experimental Forest – a 4,200 acre experimental forest researching the long-term impacts of forest management.