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June 15, 2004
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The electronic newsletter of The Nature Conservancy's New Hampshire Chapter, a monthly roundup of conservation in the Granite State. Feel free to send this along to anyone who might be interested.
For more information on this and other projects of The Nature Conservancy, visit http://nature.org/newhampshire. About this e-newsletter Click here for N.H. Chapter's Spring '04 Newsletter (PDF - 477 K) |
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| Fall Mountain in Charlestown and Langdon is a stronghold for Northeastern bulrush, a federally endangered plant. The Nature Conservancy has reached an agreement with New England Power Company on a deal to purchase and protect 950 acres around ponds near its summit. Eric Aldrich photo (c) TNC. |
The Nature Conservancy Closer to Protecting Fall Mountain
The Nature Conservancy has taken a big step forward in its effort to permanently protect 950 acres of critically important habitat on Fall Mountain in Charlestown and Langdon, including three of New Hampshire's eight populations of a globally rare plant, the Northeastern bulrush. The property also harbors pristine ponds and streams and abundant habitat for deer, wild turkey, waterfowl and other wildlife.
At its annual meeting on June 5, the Conservancy announced that it has reached agreement with New England Power Company to purchase the land. The Conservancy is raising funds for a purchase and plans to close the deal August 31.
Meanwhile, the Conservancy has a preliminary agreement with state officials to transfer the property -- once protected -- to the N.H. Division of Forests and Lands. Under this scenario, Fall Mountain would become New Hampshire's newest state forest. The Nature Conservancy would hold a conservation easement that would prevent development and ensure sound recreation and forest management practices to protect the Northeastern bulrush and other sensitive and exemplary ecological features.
Click here to read the full story.
A Fine Day near the Connecticut River:
Wrap-up of the New Hampshire Chapter's Annual Meeting
There was fine weather and strong enthusiasm for conservation at the recent annual meeting of the Conservancy's New Hampshire chapter. The meeting was held June 5 at the Student Conservation Association on the banks of the Connecticut River in Charlestown.
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| TNC New Hampshire Trustee Dick Mallion presents this year's stewadship awards to Eagle Scouts Nick Aube (left) and Stephen Davis. Eric Aldrich photo (C) TNC. |
The highlight of the day was the announcement that the Conservancy had reached an agreement with New England Power Company to purchase 950 acres on Fall Mountain, also in Charlestown.
Alice Chamberlin, chair of the New Hampshire chapter's board of trustees, said the event was "a great chance for members to hear about the Conservancy's many projects in the state, and for trustees, staff and members to spend the day together. It was also a great occasion for members to see where the Conservancy is working." Members and trustees joined staff on field trips to the Ashuelot and Connecticut rivers, Fall Mountain and Warwick Preserve.
The Conservancy also welcomed two new trustees, Rink DeWitt of Center Sandwich, and Karen Ebel, of New London. DeWitt brings over 32 years of business and coaching experience to the Conservancy, most recently with Executive Options, a career management firm based in Wellesley, Mass. He has served on 23 boards of directors, 14 as chairman. Ebel is a community activist with a legal background and a degree from Georgetown University Law School. She is the national coordinator of a public education effort regarding the internment of German Americans during World War II.
Leaving the board of trustees after many years of outstanding service are Patrick O'Donnell of Concord and Cyrus Sweet III of New Castle. The Conservancy thanks both for their vision and leadership in furthering the Conservancy's mission in New Hampshire.
Trustee Dick Mallion of Whitefield presented the chapter's annual Stewardship Award to Nick Aube of Bedford and Stephen Davis of Hooksett. Both earned their Eagle Scout badges while working on projects at the Conservancy's Manchester Cedar Swamp. Davis completed a bridge over a stream at the preserve, and Aube built a kiosk for the preserve's entrance. Thank you to both and congratulations on your Eagle badge!
This year's keynote address was a fascinating talk about the Connecticut River by Walter Wetherell, editor of This American River, an anthology of writings on New England's longest river. Support for the annual meeting came from Public Service of New Hampshire.
June 28 Meeting in Keene:
Conserving the Last Great Places on the Ashuelot River Watershed
On June 28, the Conservancy and a partnership of organizations working in the Monadnock Region will present a draft of the Ashuelot River Watershed Land Conservation Plan. The meeting is at 7 to 9:30 p.m., at Keene State College's Lloyd P. Young Student Center.
The Ashuelot River Watershed Land Conservation Plan is an innovative, science-based initiative to identify and protect important natural resources in the Ashuelot River watershed. It is a collaborative among the Monadnock Conservancy, The Nature Conservancy, Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests and the Southwest Region Planning Commission.
The partners have identified 13 focal areas throughout the watershed, ranging in size from 403 acres around Ash Swamp Brook in Swanzey to 19,296 acres around Pisgah State Park.
On Monday, June 28, the partners will present an overview of the project, along with preliminary results, and will solicit comments.
The public is welcome. For more information, call Eric Aldrich, 603-224-5853, ext. 26.
LCHIP Requests $24 Million in Capital Budget
The N.H. Land and Community Heritage Investment Program (LCHIP) has requested $24 million from the state as part of the fiscal year 2006-2007 biennial capital budget.
LCHIP board Chair Brad Wyman and Executive Director Rachel Rouillard told the Governor's Capital Budget Committee Monday that New Hampshire has been wildly successful in terms of growth and development, but it is exactly that success that is threatening the state's future.
In the last two-year budget cycle (fiscal year 2002-03), LCHIP received $12 million. In the current biennial budget, the program receieved $1.5 million, an 87 percent cut.
Rouillard told the committee that there were several good reasons to fund the program through the capital budget. First, there is historic precedent for funding conservation this way. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Legislature, along with Governors Sununu and Gregg, bonded $45 million to support the temporary Land Conservation Investment Program (LCIP), and nearly half of that went to a community grants program much like LCHIP's. Other one-time land conservation projects, such as Lake Tarleton and the Connecticut Lakes Headwaters projects, have also been funded by bonds. Also, there's a good and simple financial rationale for doing this, Rouillard said. By bonding now, the state can invest in resources that are rising quickly in value, while paying historically low interest rates to do so.
For more information, click here.
Welcome New TNC Staff
The Conservancy has hired Wink Lees to help stewardship operations in the northern part of the state. Lees is the Conservancy's new stewardship assistant, a seasonal position through October. He'll be responsible for an array of ecological monitoring and stewardship tasks at Conservancy preserves in the Mount Washington Valley and North Country. He's a native of the Mount Washington Valley, teaches at Antioch New England Graduate School in Keene, has a master's degree in environmental planning and has worked with the Appalachian Mountain Club and White Mountain National Forest.
Also, Peter Bowman joins the Conservancy as an ecologist at the N.H. Natural Heritage Bureau. The Conservancy now funds and employs five positions that work at the bureau. Bowman most recently worked for the Delaware Natural Heritage Program, where he developed state natural community classifications and conducted field sampling work. He has a master's degree in forestry from Duke University in North Carolina.
About The Nature Conservancy
The Nature Conservancy's mission is to preserve the plants, animals and natural communities that represent the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive. The Conservancy has protected more than 98 million acres of valuable lands and waters worldwide. The organization accomplishes its mission through the efforts of state and country chapters, which are responsible for protecting and managing conservation land, and for raising operating and capital funds to support their programs.
Since establishing its first preserve here in 1964, The Nature Conservancy of New Hampshire has helped protect more than 121,000 acres of ecologically significant land and currently owns and manages 30 preserves across the state.
The Nature Conservancy in New Hampshire:
22 Bridge St., Fourth Floor, Concord, NH, 03301. 603-224-5853
Great Bay Field Office: 167 Exeter Road, Unit 1A, Newfields, N.H. 03856. 603-772-2203
Green Hills Preserve: P.O. Box 310, 2760 White Mt. Hwy, North Conway, NH 03860. 603-356-8833.
About this e-newsletter
Granite State Glances is the electronic newsletter of The Nature Conservancy's New Hampshire Chapter. It is distributed via email on or around the 15th of every month.
All subscribers (email addresses) on this list are kept confidential and are not shared by The Nature Conservancy.
For questions about this e-newsletter, contact Eric Aldrich, The Nature Conservancy, NH Chapter, 603-224-5853, ext. 26.
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