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The Nature Conservancy in New Hampshire Home Projects Chapter News Contact Places We Protect Field Trips & Events Press Releases Volunteer Ways of Giving Slide Shows Conservation Buyer |
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Nature.org Donate Nature.org/newhampshire
Great Bay Partnership protects critical lands in Durham, Stratham. Nature Conservancy protects additional habitat in Ossipee Pine Barrens . NH LCHIP requesting $12 million for conservation. Land trustsrising to the challenge in NH and US. People make it happen: |
If you have not made a gift this year and would like to support TNC's many conservation projects here in New Hampshire and around the world, please consider a donation. We need your support, especially as the end of 2004 approaches, to protect New Hampshire's critical habitats, research its biodiversity and conserve the unique natural character of this state. You may give online byclicking here . To learn about a life-income gift (charitable gift annuity, bequest, or gifts of stock or land, please contactTiffany McKenna, director of philanthropy, at 603-224-5853, ext. 15.
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Congress Approves Funding for Conservation There's some great news for New Hampshire's conservation efforts from Great Bay to the Connecticut River. The federal spending bill recently passed out of Congress includes $8 million for critical habitat protection around Great Bay and an additional $10 million for conservation projects throughout New Hampshire. The bill provides $8 million to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for the Great Bay Resource Protection Partnership. Since 1994 the Great Bay Resource Protection Partnership has protected more than 3,400 acres of critical habitat around Great Bay. Local communities and other organizations have protected an additional 3,000 acres that the partnership has been able to use as match to leverage federal funding. That's more than 6,000 acres protected in the Great Bay area in 10 years. With The Nature Conservancy as lead acquisition agent, the partnership also includes the Audubon Society of New Hampshire, Ducks Unlimited, Great Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, Natural Resources Conservation Service, New Hampshire Fish and Game Department, Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. “The Great Bay Estuary is one of the most diverse ecological environments in our state," said U.S. Senator Judd Gregg (R-NH), who chairs the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee that oversees funding for NOAA. "Its location and potential for growth would ordinarily invite residential and commercial development but thanks to the work being done by the Great Bay Partnership and organizations like The Nature Conservancy, a significant portion of the Great Bay is now protected for generations of Granite Staters to enjoy. In the finest New Hampshire tradition, the conservation work continues to be driven by local organizations taking an interest in their community and the future of their state." "Senator Gregg understands the importance of protecting New Hampshire's greatest natural treasures," said Daryl Burtnett, state director of The Nature Conservancy in New Hampshire. "Gregg's vision and leadership on conservation issues have once again produced essential funding for the protection of great places like Pondicherry Wildlife Refuge, the Connecticut River, and Great Bay." The $10 million for Granite State programs was included in the section of the bill that funds the U.S. Department of the Interior. The projects include $1 million for the Silvio Conte National Wildlife Refuge along the Connecticut River; $2 million for the Northeastern States Research Cooperative (which includes the Hubbard Brook research station); $1.5 million for land acquisition at the Lake Umbagog National Wildlife Refuge; $1.2 million for protecting land near Trout Pond in Freedom; $900,000 for the Lamprey River Wild and Scenic project; $750,000 for Mirror Lake; $425,000 for the Lake Umbagog research study on wildlife;$200,000 for the Northern Forest Partnership Program; and $55,000 for a study on the economic value of New Hampshire's lakes, rivers, streams and ponds. "The need for responsible and locally driven environmental preservation programs is critical," said Senator Gregg. "New Hampshire's population and communities continue to grow and expand into sensitive areas from the Great North Woods to the Great Bay to the Connecticut River. Our state is fortunate to have such great local leaders who seize opportunities head-on by working with government agencies at all levels and environmental organizations to improve the quality of life for generations of Granite Staters." For more information, visit http://gregg.senate.gov/.Great Bay Partnership Protects And here's some more good news for Great Bay. On behalf of the Great Bay Resource Protection Partnership, The Nature Conservancy has recently purchased and protected 81.8 acres in Durham, near Crommet Creek and Dame Road. The land will ultimately be transferred to the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department. The parcel abuts other lands previously protected by the Partnership and includes several large beaver flowages that provide excellent habitat for waterfowl and many other wildlife species. These beaver flowages are part of a larger network of wetlands on some of the other nearby protected lands. The purchase was made possible by a grant from NOAA. The Nature Conservancy has recently completed two additional land protection deals on behalf of the Great Bay Resource Protection Partnership, including:
Nature Conservancy Protects Additional Habitat in Ossipee Pine Barrens The Nature Conservancy continues its efforts to protect the Ossipee Pine Barrens, a globally rare ecosystem and important habitat for birds and rare moths. The Conservancy has purchased 84 acres in Ossipee, a parcel that was slated for subdivision and development. The property lies between the Windsock Village and Soaring Heights private airport communities and the West Branch of the Ossipee River. Twenty-four acres of the land is part of New Hampshire’s best example of a red maple floodplain forest, with the rest being pitch pine-scrub oak habitat. The Nature Conservancy owns additional pine barrens habitat directly across the river. The Conservancy learned that developers were interested in expanding one of the adjoining private airport communities and had approached the property's former owner, North Atlantic Air Inc. of Beverly, Mass. The Conservancy quickly made an offer for the property, which was accepted by North Atlantic Air's principle owner, Kenneth Robinson. <<<Read More>>> Return to the topNew Hampshire LCHIP Requesting $12 Million The New Hampshire Land and Community Heritage Investment Program (LCHIP) will request $12 million in the next two-year budget cycle for grants to protect natural and historic resources. The $12 million request is half of what the program needs according to Rachel Rouillard, LCHIP's executive director. "It only restores our grant-making abilities to what it was in the FY 03-04 biennium," she said. In 2002, the program's grant making budget was reduced by 87 percent - the only program in the state's budget to be cut so deeply. That budget also restricted the program from funding any historic preservation projects. LCHIP's request comes at a time when New Hampshire faces challenges of increased development and population growth. "By making investments that generate revenue for the state and keep New Hampshire special, the Land and Community Heritage Program offers huge return on a small investment when we need revenue," Rouillard said. The New Hampshire Land and Community Heritage Investment Program is an independent state authority that awards grants to New Hampshire communities and nonprofits to conserve and preserve New Hampshire's most important natural, cultural and historic resources. Through this grant program every dollar invested brings significant local, private, federal funds, and helped New Hampshire businesses and traditional business districts. Funding from LCHIP has played a key role in conservation projects throughout the state, including protection of Fall Mountain, the Connecticut Lakes Headwaters and other projects of The Nature Conservancy. "We want to recognize the importance of LCHIP in making projects like this possible," said Daryl Burtnett, state director of The Nature Conservancy in New Hampshire. "We are among many organizations and citizens who want to see meaningful funding restored to LCHIP. The program has established a phenomenal record in its ability to leverage state dollars with private and public funding sources to accomplish crucial conservation. We want to see that record continue." Since 2000, LCHIP has funded 112 projects in 89 communities across the state. The supplied funds return new revenues, new jobs and help build local businesses. The $16.5 million granted has leveraged over $103 million in additional private and public funding (including the $40 million raised through the Connecticut Lakes project that safeguarded 171,500 acres of land and historic sites). For every $1 of public money allocated, an additional $5.95 is raised from other sources. For more information, visit www.lchip.org. Land Trusts Rising to the Challenge In the past five years, private, nonprofit land trusts have doubled the amount of land protected in the United States and are now protecting more than 800,000 acres each year, according to a new report by the Land Trust Alliance. The nation's 1,500 land trusts, according to the report, have protected more than 9 million acres as of December 31, 2003, doubling the acreage protected just five years ago. The biggest growth among land trusts is at the local level, with new land trusts forming at the rate of two per week. The fastest growing region for land trusts now is in the West, according to the LTA. "The mission of land trusts is not just to save land, but to protect the traditional lifestyles of a community, a way of life that remains connected to that land," said LTA President Rand Wentworth. "This can mean saving the family farm, setting up a community garden or urban park, ensuring the sustainability of a Southeastern forest, or conserving ranchland in the American West." New Hampshire has more than 50 private land trusts, from local efforts run by dedicated volunteers to statewide organizations led by professional staff and trustees. New Hampshire's land trusts have protected a total of 240,000 acres, according to the LTA. That includes including 77,113 owned outright by the organizations and an additional 119,792 protected by conservation easement. An additional 43,165 acres have been transferred to agencies or protected by other means. In the past 10 years, New Hampshire's land trusts have grown in both number and in staff, according to Dijit Taylor of the N.H. Center for Land Conservation Assistance, a program of the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests. And much of the southern two-thirds of New Hampshire is now represented by local land trusts, though there are some local exceptions. "New Hampshire's land trusts are doing really well," Taylor said. "But increasingly, they've got their work cut out for them." For more information, visit www.lta.org.
people make it happen Bill and Nancy Marshall are reminded every day about the magnificence and fragility of the natural world. Behind their house in New Castle is Little Harbor, where changing seasons bring stunning views of water and land. With this backdrop, the Marshalls have embraced a strong conservation ethic ... a desire to leave the world better than when they found it. "I think that a lot of people feel just like we do. They want to see open space preserved," said Bill Marshall. "But as people go on with their everyday lives, it doesn't dawn on some that there are many things they can do to preserve these great open spaces." The Marshalls have supported TNC's conservation efforts as members since 1992. They soon found a good way to connect with the Conservancy's efforts ... and the land. Both volunteer by monitoring TNC's holdings at Bayside Point in Greenland, Lubberland Creek in Durham and Mount Teneriffe in Milton. "It's a real team effort by the both of us and we love doing it," he said. "We get to go out and see these marvelous places that we wouldn't otherwise be able to see. And we help The Nature Conservancy in the process." But their dedication to conservation goes way beyond that. The Marshalls are leaving a legacy. "When we sat down to make out our wills, we thought about our interest in conservation," Bill said. "And we thought that of all the different environmental organizations, The Nature Conservancy just did a super job. That would be the organization to receive some of our estate." The Conservancy, he said, "subscribes to our goals and ambitions for conservation. We like its vision of saving the last great places on Earth."
To sign up for these events, please contact Megan Lepage, org or 603,224-5853, ext. 23. TNC field trips are free and open to members and non-members. Please leave pets at home. Field trips will proceed when six or more people are signed up ... so register now! Great Bay, Durham Fall Mountain, Charlestown TNC's Loverens Mill Preserve, Antrim Special Event: Upcoming Events:
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