With the critical support of Burt's Bees founder Roxanne Quimby and her family, the National Park Foundation and the White House have announced the designation of Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument in north-central Maine as a unit of the National Park System.

The new monument was made possible by Quimby's donation of 87,500 acres of land, estimated to be worth some $60 million, along with an endowment gift of $20 million, which will be used to supplement federal funds for the monument's initial operational needs and infrastructure development. Quimby and her family also pledged to raise an additional $20 million in future funding for the monument. Announced in conjunction with the centennial anniversary of the National Park Service, the designation of the land as a national monument will permanently protect significant natural, scientific, and historic, and cultural resources, wildlife habitat, and one of the most pristine watersheds in the Northeast.

The designation follows a years-long effort by Quimby to have the land designated as a national park, which requires congressional approval. That plan faced local opposition, however, from locals concerned about the future impact of such a designation on the area's forest products industry. Indeed, members of Maine's congressional delegation have never been completely on board with the idea, Maine Public Broadcasting reports. Designation as a monument, which can be done by executive order of the president, is seen as a stepping stone to national park status.

"Our family would like to thank President Obama and the members of his administration for their hard work to safeguard America's natural treasures and for their efforts to prepare the National Park Service for its next one hundred years of success," the board of Elliotsville Plantation, Inc. — the foundation that has been spearheading the park effort with Quimby's son, Lucas St. Clair — said in a statement.

Lisa Pohlmann, executive director of the Natural Resources Council of Maine, told MPBN that a national monument twice the size of Acadia National Park would be a boon for a region that has seen paper mills shuttered and hundreds of jobs lost. "It's got this wonderful collection of mountains and forest and wildlife, and we all know that it would be quite a nice boon to a badly hit area, which is the Katahdin region," said Pohlmann. "They need some economic help up there and this could really do the trick."