Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests Trains New Class of Land Stewards
Eighteen new land steward volunteers with the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests completed their core training requirements recently at a two-day program held at Sargent Center in Hancock, NH.
The new stewards came from many different regions of NH and received instruction in the Forest Society’s history, mission, and goals; forest management; trail maintenance; recreation management; and map/compass/GPS skills while living communally and sharing meals for the weekend.
The 2010 class of stewards will be active in monitoring and caring for 20 different Forest Society reservations, many of which do not already have active stewards. The Forest Society owns and manages over 48,000 acres of conservation land in more than 95 New Hampshire communities. These lands were conserved to promote sustainable forestry, protect water quality, provide wildlife habitat, as well as share their natural beauty and tranquility with New Hampshire residents and visitors.
“The Land Steward Program now has roughly 85 active stewards monitoring 80 of our 165 reservations,” said Forest Society Land Steward Coordinator Carrie Deegan. “As the program expands in the coming years, we hope to get closer to 100 percent coverage of all Forest Society reservations.”
If you are interested in learning about how to become a Forest Society Land Steward, please visit forestsociety.org/ourproperties/land-stewardship.asp.
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.