¥Maine lakes represent a sense of history and cultural unity to both Maine residents and visitors to the state.

¥In particular, they are a major source of recreation, for swimming, fishing and boating.

¥They have significant economic value for many sectors, and the annual economic value of lakes in maine is about 7 billion dollars

¥Property value
¥From a purely economic point of view, Lake water quality is important, and expensive to maintain. The total cost to administer State water related programs in 2000 was $11. 1 million.
¥Including liscensing, compliance, enforcement, technical asssistance, pollution prevention, wastewater engineering, environmental assessment, lake restoration, non-point source controls, and ground water protection.
¥Property values are directly related to water quality

While lakes in Maine are an important resource for visitors and lakeshore property owners, human activity is one of the largest contributors to water quality degradation.