PREP Reports & Publications

Abstract

As a community resource the Town Forest offers many benefits and values to residents and visitors. The Forest provides wildlife habitat, scenic beauty, clean air, cool temperatures, hiking trails and other outdoor recreation, wood products, water supply protection, flood storage, historical artifacts, among others. People value the Town Forest for many different reasons. Fortunately, most of these are complementary benefits, each available without compromising the integrity of the others. A goal of this Stewardship Plan is to understand and appreciate the values of the Town Forest and to guide the use and management of these resources over time. This is achieved by identifying the known soils, topography, plants, animals, habitats, forests, waterways, historical artifacts, and public uses that occur in the Town Forest. The surrounding landscape, including ownership patterns, affects the Town Forest, and therefore can influence stewardship decisions. Past, present, and potential future natural and human disturbances are also an important factor in guiding long-term stewardship. The Stewardship Plan builds an understanding of the relationship among these features and factors. Another purpose of the Stewardship Plan is to meet the provisions of a proposed conservation easement on the Town Forest. The Town of Danville is working with New Hampshire Audubon to convey an easement on a majority of the Town Forest to that organization. The draft conservation easement deed requires that all activities in the Town Forest be conducted in accordance with a Stewardship Plan. The specifics of the conservation easement deed are described in more detail below (see page 8-9) and a copy of the draft easement deed is in Appendix A. A grant from the New Hampshire Estuaries Project (NHEP) Community Technical Assistance Program provided funding to complete this Stewardship Plan. NHEP contracted with Ibis Wildlife Consulting to prepare the Plan, working with the Danville Forestry Committee, Conservation Commission, Heritage Commission and Selectmen, as well as staff from the NHEP and New Hampshire Audubon (Audubon). Many people through participation in the abovementioned committees contributed information and ideas to the Plan. Existing plans, studies and other documents provided valuable information about the Town Forest.

Department

Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership

Publication Date

9-2008

Publisher

Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership, Durham, NH

Document Type

Report

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