The Conservation Alliance has granted $25,000 to support the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests’ effort to protect land on the lower slopes of Mount Monadnock.
The Forest Society is working to conserve 404 acres in Jaffrey and Marlborough that include important sections of active hiking trails and critical wildlife habitat. The conservation of these lands will also protect the panoramic mountain views of Mount Monadnock that are widely visible from across the region.
The Forest Society must raise $760,000 by December 31 to conserve these properties.
“This grant is a big first step toward our goal,” said Forest Society President/Forester Jane Difley. “We are very grateful to the Conservation Alliance for their support at this time.”
The Conservation Alliance was founded in 1989 by industry leaders REI, Patagonia, The North Face, and Kelty with the goal of increasing outdoor industry support for land conservation efforts. Today the Alliance includes more than 175 member companies, including Eastern Mountain Sports (EMS), a NH-based outdoor retailer.
The Alliance disburses its collective annual membership dues to protect threatened wild habitat, especially where outdoor enthusiasts recreate. Since its founding, the Alliance has pledged over $9 million to conserve more than 50 million acres of land throughout North America. By the end of 2011, the Conservation Alliance will distribute another $1 million to conservation projects throughout North America – including Mount Monadnock here in New Hampshire.
The Forest Society’s Monadnock conservation project was nominated for the grant by JetBoil, an outdoor stove manufacturer based in Manchester, NH, and endorsed by EMS.
Mount Monadnock is one of the most-climbed mountains in the western hemisphere. In 1915 the Forest Society conserved its first tract on Mount Monadnock, beginning a long-term effort to protect the natural integrity of the mountain and its surroundings. Since then, the Forest Society has acquired more than 5,000 acres at Mount Monadnock and Gap Mountain in the towns of Dublin, Marlborough, Troy, and Jaffrey.The Forest Society leases much of its land to the State to be operated as Mount Monadnock State Park.
For more information about the Forest Society’s conservation work on Mount Monadnock or to support the organization’s current conservation efforts on the mountain, contact Susanne Kibler-Hacker at (603) 224-9945 ext. 314, or visit forestsociety.org/monadnock.
Founded in 1901, the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests is the state’s oldest and largest non-profit land conservation organization. Supported by 10,000 families and businesses, the Forest Society’s mission is to perpetuate the state’s forests by promoting land conservation and sustainable forestry. For more information, visit www.forestsociety.org.