This page for advocacy issues related to State Parks, State Forests, WMNF, and Town Forests

In 1885, the New Hampshire Forest Commission reported –

"Instead of cutting only timber that is matured, everything is cut to the size of five or six inches in diameter, and what remains is cut into firewood or burned at once, leaving a dreary waste. In Lancaster, the timber and wood are nearly all gone and the mountains are being stripped to their summits. Originally a dense forest covered our state. This magnificent forest has long since disappeared."

The Forest Society is working side-by-side with a number of partners to shape a vision for land conservation in New Hampshire and parts of Massachusetts. Each regional plan varies somewhat in its visions, approach and end result, but each plan is also unified with the others in terms of the evolution of the planning process used in all its planning efforts.

Below is a brief synopsis of the four regional plans with links to the accompanying data and maps:

Every year the Forest Society helps private landowners conserve thousands of acres through two primary methods:

Land acquisitions

Permanent land acquisitions become part of the Forest Society's reservation system and are managed for recreation, timber, wildlife habitat, watershed protection and scenery. The protected properties remain on the tax rolls, and most are open to the public. Our reservations range in size from four to 4,000 acres and are located in every part of the state.

Changing Landscapes

New Hampshire is unusually well endowed with forests and sparkling waters. We enjoy walking, hiking, picnicking, hunting, and working on our lands. Products from the forests and farmland nourish and shelter us. Open space sustains our economy and our culture.

The landscapes of New Hampshire help define and enrich our quality of life.