Tag Archive for: Press Release

Land Trusts Partner to Protect 600 Acres of Norfolk Forest

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New Wildland Preserves Habitat for Rare Species

Norfolk, Connecticut —Norfolk Land Trust, Inc. (NLT) and Northeast Wilderness Trust (“the Wilderness Trust”) have teamed up to permanently protect a sprawling forest block in northwestern Connecticut. NLT, which owns the 600-acre parcel, has conveyed a forever-wild conservation easement on the land to the Wilderness Trust. The South Norfolk Wildlands conservation easement ensures that habitat for rare plant and animal species remains preserved into the future and expands Litchfield County’s forever-wild acreage.

The conservation easement was made possible by the Wilderness Trust’s “Wildlands Partnership.” The program provides land trusts in the Northeast with funds for stewardship and other operating costs in exchange for the establishment of forever-wild conservation easements on eligible lands. The South Norfolk Wildlands conservation easement brings the number of Connecticut acres conserved via the Wildlands Partnership to nearly 2,100.

Image from the South Norfolk Wildlands conservation easement by Eric Bailey.

The completion of the South Norfolk Wildlands conservation easement caps a more than 40-year, community-led effort to permanently protect a collection of forested parcels in the town of Norfolk. Several Norfolk families banded together in the 1980s to buy and conserve a 500-acre property to spare the land from development. NLT began purchasing pieces of the property in 2004, and with the recent acquisition of a 235-acre holding north of the original property, now owns a 610-acre forest block. The conservation easement on the land, held by the Wilderness Trust, adds another layer of legal protection to this exemplary property that the State of Connecticut’s Natural Diversity Database indicates supports at least 10 species of rare animals and plants, including silver-haired, red, and hoary bats and sharp-lobed hepatica.

The property hosts mature upland forests. These range from hardwood-dominated areas, where species like sugar maple and American beech form a tall canopy underlain by blankets of mountain laurel and jewelweed, to damper settings of Eastern hemlock and white pine towering over shaded understories of Canada mayflower and starflower. Among these forests are two “key habitats” for conservation designated by the state: Mixed Northern Hardwood and Central Appalachian Oak-Pine. The Wilderness Trust’s conservation easement ensures that these forests can grow old and store carbon into the future, free from the pressures of logging and development.


Forest at the South Norfolk Wildlands conservation easement by Eric Bailey.

Nearly a mile and a half of streams flow through the property, providing headwaters for both the east and west branches of the Naugatuck River. These waterways anchor the parcel’s 26 acres of wetlands, a forested wetland in the southern portion of the property, and a handful of beaver meadows.

The wider context in which the South Norfolk Wildlands sits also boosts its ecological benefits. The parcel is just south of the state’s Dennis Hill State Park, and near to the 7,500-acre Great Mountain Forest. Also in the area are the Wilderness Trust’s Cornwall Wildlands and Salisbury conservation easements. This proximity expands the South Norfolk Wildlands’ significance beyond its borders, helping to stitch together a vibrant corridor of conserved lands essential for landscape connectivity and species movement.

More Than 400 Acres in Northwest Connecticut Conserved as Forever Wild

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Cornwall Conservation Trust’s Forever-Wild Holdings Now Exceed 800 Acres

Cornwall and West Cornwall—Cornwall Conservation Trust, Inc. (CCT), in partnership with Northeast Wilderness Trust (NEWT), has added two forever-wild conservation easements to more than 400 acres in northwest Connecticut’s Litchfield County. The NEWT-held easements, one covering the Cathedral Pines Preserve, Quarry Hill, and Thurber’s Arrowhead properties (hereafter referred to as the “Cathedral Pines conservation easement”) and another on the Trinity Forest Preserve property, both in Cornwall, bring CCT’s forever-wild holdings to more than 800 acres. The easements were made possible by NEWT’s Wildlands Partnership. The Partnership is an innovative program that provides local land trusts with the financial assistance and technical resources necessary to protect more of their land as forever wild, reducing or eliminating active management and allowing natural processes, rather than human intervention, to shape the land’s future.

Image from the Cathedral Pines easement by Shelby Perry.

The conservation easements are the second and third of their kind for CCT. In 2021, CCT and NEWT collaborated to place a forever-wild conservation easement on the 375-acre Cornwall Wildlands property, also in Cornwall. After the success of that collaboration, CCT and NEWT set out to add additional forever-wild easements to CCT lands.

“CCT has appreciated its relationship with NEWT and the organization’s practical approach to ensuring that these properties remain ‘forever wild’ and a boon for both humans and wildlife,” said Bart Jones, President of CCT. “In addition, CCT’s financial ability to steward these forests has been significantly enhanced by NEWT’s Wildlands Partnership grant program.”

The Cathedral Pines conservation easement covers three CCT holdings: the preexisting Cathedral Pines Preserve and two new additions, Quarry Hill and Thurber’s Arrowhead. CCT acquired the original 42-acre Cathedral Pines Preserve, which hosts the remnants of a 150-year-old white pine and hemlock forest, from The Nature Conservancy in 2020, and expanded the property by a combined 32 acres with the Quarry Hill and Thurber’s Arrowhead additions in 2023.

Wetland on the Trinity Forest conservation easement by Shelby Perry.

The Quarry Hill and Thurber’s Arrowhead additions will boost preexisting old forest and excellent wildlife habitat on the Cathedral Pines Preserve. A series of tornadoes in 1989 leveled many of the towering pines for which the Preserve is named, but rather than “clean up” the forest after the tornado, The Nature Conservancy allowed natural, post-disturbance processes to persist. As a result, the Cathedral Pines Preserve showcases old-growth forest characteristics hard to find in the Northeast. The standing white pines measure between 120 and 140 feet tall, and the forest displays the “messiness” indicative of ecological complexity and health. This structural complexity, including standing dead trees (“snags”) and an abundance of coarse woody debris, make the Cathedral Pines conservation easement a haven for wildlife. Meanwhile, adjacent younger forests on Quarry Hill and Thurber’s Arrowhead will now have the opportunity to grow old like those on the Cathedral Pines Preserve, creating 74 contiguous acres of exemplary old forest thanks to NEWT’s forever-wild conservation easement.

The Trinity Forest conservation easement, which encompasses CCT’s Trinity Forest Preserve and Brokaw Preserve, has tremendous conservation and wildlife value. The property features abundant upland forests of hard- and softwood species like sugar maple, black cherry, and eastern hemlock; many of these forested areas exhibit mature-forest characteristics. Deep ravines and pathways to the high-elevation ridges of Housatonic State Forest offer excellent views of nearby Mohawk Mountain, the town of Sharon, and the Housatonic River. The easement also hosts substantial waterways and wetlands, including 1.6 miles of streams that eventually feed into the Housatonic River and a 10-acre beaver pond. These aquatic and wetland habitats support rare wildlife like the Northern Saw-whet Owl, a species of special concern in Connecticut that has been documented on the property. Trinity Forest’s plentiful ledges and cliffs may also provide needed habitat for the state’s nine—and imperiled—bat species.

The wider context in which the easement is located also speaks to its ecological value. The Trinity Forest conservation easement falls within the Appalachian Trail Corridor focal area and abuts Connecticut’s roughly 700-acre Housatonic State Forest to the southwest. The forever-wild easement guarantees that this unique slice of a major forest block and wildlife and aquatic corridor, used by species from bobcat to turkey to trout, stays protected in perpetuity.

The Cathedral Pines and Trinity Forest conservation easements bring NEWT’s Connecticut conservation holdings to more than 1,500 acres—the lion’s share protected through the Wildlands Partnership.

picture of a pond with a wooded background

257 Acres of Wetlands, River Frontage, and Forests Protected in a Critical Wildlife Corridor

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Star Lake, NY— Northeast Wilderness Trust (NEWT), a regional land trust based in Montpelier, Vermont, announced today that it has conserved 257 acres of prime wildlife habitat just north of the Adirondack Park’s Five Ponds Wilderness Area. The newly conserved Little River Wilderness Preserve in Star Lake, New York adds forever-wild acreage to the Algonquin to Adirondacks (A2A) wildlife corridor connecting Ontario’s Algonquin Park with the Adirondacks.

picture of a pond with a wooded background

“Little River’s 257 acres carry outsized ecological and conservation significance,” said Jon Leibowitz, President and CEO of Northeast Wilderness Trust. “This Preserve’s plentiful wetlands, sustained by a healthy beaver population, provide habitat for an array of plant and animal species. With its shared border with the Five Ponds Wilderness Area, Little River builds on one of the wildest regions of the Adirondack Park, which is among the most successful landscape-scale rewilding projects in modern history and an enduring inspiration for our work at Northeast Wilderness Trust.”

The Little River Wilderness Preserve is shaped by water. As suggested by its name, the property includes about half a mile of the Little River, which flows through the Preserve’s southeast corner. In this area and others are more than 70 acres of wetlands, many of which are maintained by beavers. Speckled alder, black spruce, and balsam fir abound in these waterlogged areas, while Great Blue Herons stalk prey along shores thick with species like blue flag iris and swamp candles. The Preserve’s abundant water has also helped to discourage development and extraction, leaving the wetland complexes in excellent ecological shape.

closeup of a mushroom within moss

A 1,534-foot summit at the center of the property is home to impressive upland forests, bedrock outcroppings, and a steep escarpment. From this vantage point, one can look south and see the Little River and, beyond, the Five Ponds Wilderness Area. This remote region of the Adirondack Park hosts stands of old, uncut forest, a rarity for the Northeast. With the Preserve now protected as forever wild, Little River’s upland forests, as well as the property’s lower-altitude Northern Hardwood Forest communities of sugar maple, hobblebush, red trillium, and other species, will also have the freedom to grow old.

As the climate changes, species like moose, snowshoe hare, and fisher will need to move north to access suitable habitat and adapt to ecosystem shifts associated with rising temperatures and boom-and-bust precipitation patterns. Forever-wild protection of the Little River Wilderness Preserve adds a vital piece to the A2A corridor and bolsters efforts to connect the landscapes and ecosystems of the Northeast, where only about 5% of the region is conserved as forever-wild.

“When large parcels like the Little River Wilderness Preserve are protected, it’s a win,” said Jackie Bowen, Conservation Director for the Adirondack Council, a frequent NEWT partner. “And when these parcels are connected to protected public lands, it’s a big win. Linking these landscapes means expanded corridors for wildlife movement and migration, and a boost for the ecological processes that support clean water and resilient forests in the Adirondack Park. NEWT’s purchase and management of this tract ensures the parcel and its connection are guaranteed lasting protection.”

About Northeast Wilderness Trust: Northeast Wilderness Trust conserves forever-wild landscapes for Nature and people. It accomplishes this work by acquiring and stewarding land as forever-wild, and by holding forever-wild conservation easements on properties owned by other organizations or individuals. Across New England and New York, the Wilderness Trust secures wild places where Nature can thrive, wildlife can wander, and people can find beauty and quiet. Since its founding in 2002, Northeast Wilderness Trust has protected more than 92,000 forever-wild acres. Learn more at www.newildernesstrust.org.

NEWT and Native Land Conservancy Partner to Protect Wampanoag Lands

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This story first appeared in the Cape Cod Times on November 18, 2024.

KINGSTON, MA—With a recent gift of 33 acres of land in Kingston from a regional land trust, Native Land Conservancy in Mashpee now holds almost 100 acres across seven Massachusetts towns.

Prior to this gift, the Conservancy held titles to about 65 acres in Mashpee, Yarmouthport, Easton, Barnstable, New Salem, and Aquinnah.

“This donation from Northeast Wilderness Trust serves to deepen our relationship as neighbors,” said Conservancy Founding President Ramona Peters, a member of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe. “And gives us the opportunity to care for these lands in our fullest capacity as Indigenous land protectors.”

The 322-acre Muddy Pond Wilderness Preserve, owned by Northeast Wilderness Trust, that abuts the 33 acres of land recently gifted to Native Land Conservancy.

The 33 acres joins with the Conservancy’s 32-acre Wampanoag Common Lands at Muddy Pond in Kingston and the abutting 322-acre Muddy Pond Wilderness Preserve, owned by the trust, also in Kingston.

“Working together with the Native Land Conservancy has been an enriching experience for Northeast Wilderness Trust,” said Jon Leibowitz, the trust president and CEO. “Our partnership with NLC has secured habitat and freedom for the wild creatures who call these places home.” The trust is based in Vermont.

The newly donated lands represent a portion of the Wampanoag’s ancestral homelands, according to the Conservancy. The land is also part of the rare Atlantic Coastal Pine Barrens and habitat for four-legged, winged, and finned creatures including garter snakes, bats, coyotes, red-tailed hawks, and wood frogs.

What will the Conservancy do with the land?

The Conservancy plans to permanently conserve the 33 acres, according to a press release.

Alongside the donation, the trust is also conveying a forever-wild conservation easement, which is pending approval from the commonwealth. The easement would be located on the trust’s Muddy Pond Wilderness Preserve.

In reciprocation, the Conservancy will convey a forever-wild conservation easement on the lands gifted by the Trust.

A conservation easement, according to the National Conservation Easement Database, is a legal agreement between a landowner and a conservation organization or government agency that limits how a property can be developed. A conservation easement can protect the land’s conservation values, such as the quality of water or the preservation of forests and agricultural lands.

Conservancy holds land in areas across the state

Among its purchases, in 2023, the Conservancy bought the Aquinnah Shop Restaurant and surrounding land on Martha’s Vineyard for $2 million, with plans to return the land in perpetuity to the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah).

overview of landscape

Vast Stretch of Central Maine Wetlands and Forests Gains Forever-Wild Protections

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LAGRANGE, ME—Northeast Wilderness Trust, a regional land trust serving Maine and five other northeastern states, announced today that it has purchased and will permanently protect nearly 3,400 acres of wetlands and forests in Lagrange. The new Birch Stream Wilderness Preserve adds to nearby wildlands in the area and safeguards exemplary habitat for a variety of amphibians, mammals, birds, and more while ensuring the property continues to be a source of natural carbon storage.

“The extensive wetlands at Birch Stream Wilderness Preserve haven’t attracted a lot of human activity, making the property a great home for shy wildlife species,” said Shelby Perry, Northeast Wilderness Trust’s Wildlands Ecology Director. “However, shorelines of any sort are often under immense development pressure, and when these habitats are developed, wetland species that do poorly around human habitation, like Black Ducks and wood turtles, tend to lose out. Protecting these more remote, undeveloped wetland areas ensures that sensitive wildlife continue to have a place to themselves.”

overview of landscape

The property, crossed by four different streams that eventually feed into the Penobscot River, includes more than 2,000 acres of mostly undisturbed wetlands composed of several distinct natural communities. These are home to sphagnum moss, small cranberry, and numerous other wetland species. Several of these natural communities are peatlands—ecosystems of sedges, mosses, and shrubs—where drenched soils prevent the full decomposition of dead plant material. Peatlands are a potent natural climate solution, storing more carbon than any other terrestrial ecosystem, but are frequently destroyed when wetlands are drained and developed.

On certain portions of the property, wet soils and open-water areas have discouraged logging and allowed for the evolution of mature ecological characteristics, creating high-quality habitat for an abundance of species. Evidence of beaver, otter, moose, and other wildlife are present. The State of Maine has categorized swathes of the property as deer wintering habitat and others as inland waterfowl and wading bird habitat.

“Birch Stream Wilderness Preserve is a tremendous example of the multiple benefits of forever-wild places,” said Jon Leibowitz, President and CEO at Northeast Wilderness Trust. “As the Preserve’s forests and wetlands, particularly its peatlands, grow older, they will draw more and more carbon from the atmosphere. Meanwhile, myriad wildlife will continue to thrive on the property as it rewilds.”

Closeup of a birch tree

Birch Stream Wilderness Preserve is open to the public for non-motorized recreation and hunting by permission. To learn more visit: newildernesstrust.org/wilderness-conservation/hunting-and-fishing/

About Northeast Wilderness Trust

Northeast Wilderness Trust conserves forever-wild landscapes for Nature and people. It accomplishes this work by acquiring and stewarding land as forever wild, and by holding forever-wild conservation easements on properties owned by other organizations or individuals. Across New England and New York, the Wilderness Trust secures wild places where Nature can thrive, wildlife can wander, and people can find beauty and quiet. Since its founding in 2002, Northeast Wilderness Trust has protected more than 85,000 forever-wild acres. Learn more at www.newildernesstrust.org.

Landscape image of Woodbury

New conservation easement helps protect 6,250 acres of ‘forever-wild’ lands

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Vermont River Conservancy took the final steps to permanently protect more than 6,000 acres owned by Northeast Wilderness Trust at the headwaters of the Lamoille and Winooski Rivers, the organization’s largest undertaking in its 30-year history.

The “forever-wild” conservation easement ensures the property’s abundant wetlands and forests will be allowed to grow old over time, improving flood resilience for adjacent communities and protecting key wildlife habitat. The project was initiated by Northeast Wilderness Trust, which acquired multiple properties to create the expansive Woodbury Mountain Wilderness Preserve and subsequently donated the conservation easement to Vermont River Conservancy. “Northeast Wilderness Trust conveys conservation easements to other land trusts to ensure permanence beyond our ownership,” said Caitlin Mather, Land Conservation Director at Northeast Wilderness Trust. “This added layer is the highest form of legal protection. We are grateful to have partnered with Vermont River Conservancy to achieve this forever-wild outcome.”

The Preserve protects the summit of Woodbury Mountain, Eagle Ledge, expansive wetlands, and 36 miles of headwater streams.

“All climate models predict central Vermont will see more drought and more floods, just as we’ve seen over the past 2 years. Protecting vibrant wetlands and allowing headwater forests to grow old is critical to rebuilding the spongy soils that store massive amounts of water – ultimately helping keep communities safer during droughts and floods,” said Erin De Vries, conservation director for Vermont River Conservancy.

Landscape photo of Woodbury

moriah landscape

Northeast Wilderness Trust Receives Conservationist of the Year Award

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The Wilderness Trust is honored to receive the Adirondack Council’s “Conservationist of the Year” award in recognition of our forever-wild conservation work across the Northeast.

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image of forest floor with shady canopy

New Addition to Largest Non-Governmental Wilderness in Vermont

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Northeast Wilderness Trust, a regional land trust based in Montpelier, VT, has purchased 160 acres of forestland surrounded on three sides by its 6,097-acre Woodbury Mountain Wilderness Preserve.

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Nearly 2,000 Maine Acres Protected Through the Wildlands Partnership

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A version of this press release first appeared in the Ellsworth American on April 9, 2025.

ELLSWORTH, MAINE—Frenchman Bay Conservancy (FBC) and Northeast Wilderness Trust have finalized a forever-wild conservation easement on a 1,921-acre property in Ellsworth on Route 1A. The property includes 2,000 feet of shoreline on Green Lake, a glacial lake stretching through the towns of Ellsworth and Dedham. Several streams which flow into Green Lake and the Union River also reside on this property, including Boggy Brook.

In December, Frenchman Bay Conservancy acquired the Green Lake property to protect wildlife habitat while allowing public access. Hunting of non-predator species is allowed by permission. Green Lake, one of only four lakes in Maine that support a population of native land-locked salmon, supports the Green Lake National Fish Hatchery that rears endangered Atlantic Salmon. The lake is also home to the southernmost population of Arctic Char. The property on Green Lake also protects 255 acres of wetlands surrounding Gilpatrick Brook and Big Pond—wetlands that provide critical habitat for inland wading birds and waterfowl.

This purchase helps connect the shore of Green Lake with conserved lands in the Branch Lake watershed. Though the nearby conserved lands around Branch Lake are not connected to the Green Lake property yet, FBC will explore opportunities to work with willing landowners to conserve their properties. “The Green Lake property is a strategic stepping stone in establishing a wildlife corridor and protecting the watersheds of Branch and Green Lakes,” said Austin Schuver, FBC Director of Land Protection.

This project represents Frenchman Bay Conservancy’s largest purchased property to date. Northeast Wilderness Trust helped make this Ellsworth conservation project possible with a financial contribution through its Wildlands Partnership initiative. Northeast Wilderness Trust now holds a conservation easement on this Frenchman Bay Conservancy-owned property in perpetuity.

“Northeast Wilderness Trust is proud to partner with Frenchman Bay Conservancy through our Wildlands Partnership to ensure forever-wild conservation of this vital land,” said Caitlin Mather, Land Conservation Director at Northeast Wilderness Trust. “Protecting vibrant wildlife habitat and public access yields immense benefits for natural and human communities in this part of Maine.”

barn owl on a branch with a forest in the background

Northeast Wilderness Trust hosts second Learning Circle book group

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Sign up to join Northeast Wilderness Trust’s second Learning Circle book group. 

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Northeast Wilderness Trust Announces Promotion of Jon Leibowitz to President and CEO, New Leadership Structure, and Hiring of Nicie Panetta to Vice President of Advancement

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The Board of Directors of Northeast Wilderness Trust (NEWT) has voted to appoint Jon Leibowitz, formerly Executive Director, the organization’s first President and CEO.

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Nearly 5,000 acres of remote Vermont forest protected

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A block of over 4,700 acres of wilderness and managed forests in Richford and Jay has been permanently protected, the Vermont Land Trust (VLT), The Nature Conservancy in Vermont (TNC) and Northeast Wilderness Trust (NEWT) announced today.

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