Newsletter, December 2024 (No. 27)
Morrison Easement Conserves 286 Acres in Wolcott
NRLT members meet with Bill Morrison to walk his land and review unique environmental features. From left to right: Susie Houston, Bruce Lindwall, Bill Morrison, Peter Watkinson. Photo: Laurie Gullion
Bill Morrison, a beekeeper, land steward, and retired biology professor, has conserved in perpetuity 286 acres of high conservation value off East Hill Road in Wolcott on Pond Brook Lane.
“I have been a general naturalist since I was a kid,” he said during NRLT’s recent visit to finish mapping a portion of his property for NRLT records. And it shows.
Anyone who has walked in the woods with Bill knows that he understands his mix of open pasture, wetlands, and woodlands with deep knowledge of natural history and the history of his landscape. Old farm roads traverse the property with four acres of open fields, variety in forest types, and additional hiking trails that loop from his house with seasonable views of Mt. Elmore. An old, overgrown foundation and spring sits off the northern road beyond almost eight acres of wetland--home to beaver and moose. Bears also wander the property. Wildlife connectivity is excellent in his 271 acres of managed forest, now conserved in perpetuity through the Northern Rivers Land Trust.
Bill has retained almost eight acres in a homestead complex that includes his house, trout pond, and nearby early successional forest in old pastureland. His pond—one a birder would love--drains toward Wolcott Pond Brook, where almost a mile of brook is conserved. Bill has established through the easement that the parcel will not be sub-divided in the future.
Located off Charles Allen Road near Wolcott Pond, the Morrison easement sits close to Bertocci and Leroux properties conserved by the NRLT, the Young-Osherenko property conserved by the Vermont Land Trust, and the state of Vermont’s East Hill Wildlife Management Area. The greater Wolcott Pond upland area is a special area of action for NRLT, and we were delighted to make the easement official at a November 2024 closing.
NRLT Chair Jack Travelstead said, “We are honored that Bill has chosen the Northern Rivers Land Trust to conserve and steward his property. It has been a pleasure to work through the conservation process with Bill, who understands so well his property’s natural history and ecological values.”
Wolcott Creates 735-Acre Community Forest to Boost Trail Access, Support Biodiversity, and Strengthen Climate Defenses
by Trust for Public Land
A new 735-acre Community Forest within walking distance of the Wolcott town center has been permanently protected as of Sept. 5, 2024.
Conserved and created in partnership by the Town of Wolcott, Trust for Public Land, the Northern Rivers Land Trust, and the Vermont Housing & Conservation Board, the new public land is within walking distance of Wolcott Village and directly adjacent to the Wolcott Elementary School, Lamoille Valley Rail Trail, and the proposed Velomont Trail.
“Congratulations to the Town of Wolcott on securing its Community Forest, a 735-acre paradise with unique ecological features, well managed forest and soon-to-be miles of hiking trails. Northern Rivers Land Trust is honored to co-hold the conservation easement with the Vermont Housing and Conservation Board and looks forward to a continuing engagement with the Wolcott community in stewardship of this property, the largest single addition to NRLT’s portfolio of conserved properties.”
Containing 31 acres of wetlands, 5.5 miles of headwater streams and river frontage, and valuable wildlife corridors for moose, bobcat and other species, the forest will provide a natural link between the nearby Green River Reservoir State Park, Elmore State Forest, and East Hill Wildlife Management Area.
The property’s conservation values will be permanently secured by a conservation easement co-held by Northern Rivers Land Trust (NRLT) and Vermont Housing & Conservation Board (VHCB).
NRLT would like to especially thank the land owners, Rhoda Bedell and the Bourne Family Association, and those who contributed so generously to making this effort so successful, including Vermont Housing and Conservation Board, the United States Community Forest and Open Space Conservation program, the Trust for Public Land, The Nature Conservancy, the Bafflin Foundation, and the Davis Conservation Foundation.
NRLT Adds 2 New Trustees
Will Bunten, Hardwick
Will Bunten grew up in the Champlain Valley, studied Forest Management at the University of Vermont, and now lives in Hardwick with his family not far from NRLT conserved properties in and around Wolcott Pond. He has varied experience in forestry, including inventory work in coastal Alaska, consulting with landowners in Vermont, and working in local sugarwoods. He currently works for the Ryegate Power Station as their Regulatory Forester.
Lydia Menendez Parker, Hardwick
Lydia Menendez Parker lives in Hardwick with her family, and brings a decade of conservation and stewardship experience from working with the Vermont River Conservancy, and more recently, The Nature Conservancy. In her younger years, she followed her love of nature to pursue a degree from the Field Naturalist / Ecological Planning Master's program at UVM. Now, she volunteers with Four Winds to bring nature into her son's elementary school, and enjoys spring ephemerals, waterfalls, and old forests.
The Year in Review
by Laurie Gullion
Waterfall and brook running through Jesse Coe's conserved property in Albany, VT. Photo: Laurie Gullion
Your all-volunteer Land Trust has had a very busy year! The biggest accomplishment, thanks to a partnership with the Vermont Housing & Conservation Board and the Trust for Public Lands, is the creation of the 735-acre Wolcott Community Forest. The land trust looks forward to working with the town of Wolcott and monitoring the community forest easement in the future. Our portfolio has doubled in size this year! We have also experienced an exciting wave of inquiries from local landowners interested in easements to conserve the land they love.
What’s happened in 2024? Lots of action...
Completed an assessment of the Wolcott Community Forest property’s current conservation values that will shape our ongoing monitoring.
Established an easement on William J. Morrison’s Pond Brook Lane property in Wolcott to conserve 286 acres of forest, wetlands, and open space with high forest and wildlife connectivity (story on Page 1).
Completed three grants in connection with the Wolcott Town Forest: Davis Conservation Fund, Bafflin Foundation, and The Nature Conservancies Resilient and Connected Appalachians Program.
Met with 15 landowners to discuss the process by which easements can be established on their land.
Explored Vermont’s “30 by 30 Initiative” with Hannah Phillips from Vermont Forests, Parks, & Recreation at our June annual meeting. Examined our role in helping to conserve 30% of the state’s land by 2030.
Visited properties with landowners within NRLT’s seven-town core area: Albany, Craftsbury, Hardwick, Walden, Wolcott, Woodbury. Also visited two properties located in Calais and West Glover. (NRLT bylaws allow an easement in towns contiguous to the seven-town core.)
Began new assessments of conservation values on two proposed easements in Craftsbury and Wolcott.
Staffed an NRLT display at Craftsbury’s Antiques and Uniques fair in July to field public inquiries about land conservation.
Jared Nunnery, Orleans County forest, delivered a helpful info session for trustees about the state’s new Current Use category of Reserve Forest Lands as landowners begin to ask questions
The Year Ahead
by Laurie Gullion
Expect to see new faces when trustees show up for annual easement monitoring and special events. We have added new trustees to the board and are back up to full strength—post-pandemic—to dig into tasks for the New Year. Thank you for your support and referrals as we continue to grow. Many interested landowners find out about us from friends and neighbors who have conserved their land. That’s a great way to build connectivity in conservation!
What’s next in 2025?
Operational processes as we continue to meet with interested landowners! Our strategic work plan for the coming year involves much work around streamlining and sharing the work that trustees perform. Our committees will pursue the following initiatives:
Develop an annual monitoring program for the Wolcott Community Forest—the largest of our easements—with attention paid to initial projects already underway, such as mountain bike trail building. Our monitoring partner is the Vermont Housing and Conservation Board.
Streamline the easement process, so landowners and trustees have clarity at all times about next steps.
Explore the role of new challenges like climate change impacts and increased housing demands when considering easements.
Orient all trustees to new electronic processes and professional tools for stewardship and documentation.
Build new systems for outreach to membership and financial reporting.
Explore paid part-time staff to help with workload.
Strengthen the role of committees and broaden leadership in completing NRLT work.