Nature Conservancy Protects Additional Land Loverens Mill Preserve in Windsor

Purchase of 635 acres doubles preserve size and safeguards rare cedar stand.

Windsor, N.H. — Sept. 20, 2006 — The Nature Conservancy has purchased a key parcel in Windsor, N.H., that doubles the size of its Loverens Mill Cedar Swamp Preserve.

The Conservancy's acquisition of 635 acres just north of the preserve in Antrim and Stoddard protects from development nearly the entire watershed that drains into a globally rare Atlantic white cedar swamp in the preserve.

Loverens Mill Preserve Addition
From Holmes Hill in Windsor much of the view will remain as unbroken forest. With help from generous donors and more to raise, The Nature Conservancy has purchased 635 acres in Windsor, doubling the size of its Loverens Mill Cedar Swamp Preserve in adjoining Antrim and Stoddard.
Eric Aldrich photo.

"To preserve a precious wetland you've got to try to protect the watershed, and that's just what we've done here" said Daryl Burtnett, state director of The Nature Conservancy in New Hampshire. "The fact that this project also builds upon terrific past conservation work by the Conservancy and many partners, contributing to landscape scale protection that benefits wildlife, natural communities and the many people who enjoy these precious natural resources , makes it all the more important."

The newly purchased tract is in the southwestern corner of Windsor and contributes to a growing block of protected lands in Cheshire and Hillsborough counties that are owned and managed by several conservation organizations. The block of some 12,000 acres includes lands conserved by The Nature Conservancy, Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests, Sweet Water Trust, New Hampshire Audubon, Trust for Public Lands, and the Harris Center for Conservation Education. The tract is situated in the heart of one of several focus areas of the Quabbin to Cardigan Conservation Collaborative, a public/private effort to protect a broad corridor of interconnected conservation lands along the Monadnock Highlands.

Loverens Mill Preserve Addition The Nature Conservancy has long been interested in the area, in part because it holds one of New Hampshire's largest and best examples of an Atlantic white cedar swamp. Mostly in Antrim, this 45-acre swamp is at an elevation of 1,080 feet and has many boreal characteristics. The swamp's relatively cold environment supports northern boreal species, such as tamarack, black spruce, balsam fir, leatherleaf, and boreal lichen species.

Atlantic white cedar swamps are among the rarest wetland types in New Hampshire. Of the 500,000 acres of wetlands in New Hampshire, only 550 acres are Atlantic white cedar swamps. Threats to these habitats include development, timber harvesting, pollution and groundwater changes, all prime reasons for the Conservancy's interest in protecting watersheds around cedar swamps.

In 1998 and 1999, The Nature Conservancy purchased three tracts in Antrim and Stoddard - a total of 633 acres, including the cedar swamp. A trail from Loverens Mill Road invites visitors to experience the sights and smells of the cedar swamp.

The preserve addition is open to low-impact pedestrian uses, including hiking, hunting and snowshoeing.

The land was purchased from John and Judith Murray of Charlestown, who provided a significant discount from the fair market value.

Initial support for the acquisition also comes from Sweet Water Trust, the Barakat Foundation and the Fields Pond Foundation. The Nature Conservancy still has $284,000 to raise; if you would like to learn more about ways to support this project, contact Debbie Callahan at The Nature Conservancy, 603-224-5853, or dcallahan@tnc.org.

Loverens Mill Cedar Swamp Addition

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The Nature Conservancy is a leading international, nonprofit organization that preserves plants, animals and natural communities representing the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive. To date, the Conservancy and its more than one million members have been responsible for the protection of more than 14 million acres in the United States and have helped preserve more than 83 million acres in Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific. Since 1964 The Nature Conservancy in New Hampshire has helped protect more than 265,000 acres of ecologically significant land and currently owns and manages 28 preserves across the state. For more information, visit www.nature.org/newhampshire.