Projects it has invested in have ranged from cellulosic ethanol production and zinc hazardous waste recycling to a eucalyptus plantation and veneer mill-both in Lopiwa, Hawaii Island. And they encompass nearly 2.5 million acres of timberland committed to sustainable forestry.
"We're very careful not to tie up a forest so there's no access to traditional local community uses," says CCML CEO Charles J. Spies III.
Case in point: The 2009 purchase of about 22,000 acres surrounding the town of Grand Lakes Stream in Maine's Washington County by the Lyme Timber Company allowed for both forestry and recreation through a working forest conservation easement. Lyme also donated 132 acres to the town to develop light industry and low-income housing.
With a year-round population of 120, the town's entire industry consists of sporting camps and guides. So when a special town meeting was called to commit the taxpayers to this project with a $10,000 donation to the Down East Lakes Land Trust to purchase and manage the easement, the residents voted to quadruple the donation to $40,000.
"This was a huge commitment for our small town to make," says Louis Cataldo, a Maine guide and a first selectman in Grand Lakes Stream. "Beautiful water for our clients and land to hunt on is a critical part of our operation here. If we lost that, it would definitely, definitely affect us negatively."
A former investment banker, Ellie Winninghoff is a writer and consultant specializing in impact investing. Her writing about impact investing is linked at her blog, www.DoGoodCapitalist.com and she can be reached at: ellie.winninghoff (at) gmail (dot) com.