Land trust holds forum on difference between Town, Community forests

Barbara Richter ... executive director of NH Association of Conservation Commissions (Courtesy photo)

Moose Mountains Regional Greenways will hold its 7^th annual 'Seven Town Mixer' on Nov. 7 from 5:30-8:30 p.m. at New Durham Elementary School, 7 Old Bay Rd, New Durham.

Guest presenters Barbara Richter, Executive Director of NH Association of Conservation Commissions, and Charlie Bridges, Chair of the Birch Ridge Community Forest Citizens Committee, will discuss town forests, community forests and their benefits. The program will also feature networking and information-sharing by municipal officials from MMRG's seven service towns: Brookfield, Farmington, Middleton, Milton, New Durham, Wakefield, and Wolfeboro. The public is welcome.

At first glance, the terms 'town forest' and 'community forest' may sound superficially interchangeable, but in New Hampshire, they are quite distinct. Bridges summarizes the difference, "Community forests result from a dedicated federal funding program (the Community Forest Program of the US Forest Service), whereas town forests are defined in NH state law and designated by a town's governing body."

Bridges will speak about the Community Forest Program that made possible the recent creation and conservation of the 2,000-acre Birch Ridge Community Forest in New Durham, owned by Southeast Land Trust of New Hampshire (SELT), with a conservation easement held by MMRG.

Richter will discuss the benefits of setting aside town-owned lands as town forests based on information from the Town Forest Inventory project completed with UNH and the Northern Forest Center. Richter remarks, "I'll also cover some examples of forest management projects that Conservation Commissions have been involved in."

Members of town Select Boards, Planning Boards, Conservation Commissions, and other municipal officials are all invited to attend this unique educational event that brings town officials together. The evening will begin with networking and complimentary refreshments. This event is free and open to the public but preregistration is required. For more information, call MMRG's Education Coordinator Kari Lygren at (603) 978-7125 or email mmrgnh@gmail.com.