First in the Nation Four-Town Community Forest Created-Hike and Potluck Celebration October 13

Thanks to the hard work of dozens of citizens and the generosity of many more, a new model of community forest ownership has been established in New Hampshire and the nation.

The Ammonoosuc Conservation Trust (ACT) announced that it has purchased an 844-acre property as the Cooley-Jericho Community Forest. The land is in Easton, in the western White Mountains of New Hampshire. ACT is the region’s nonprofit lands conservancy.

The Cooley – Jericho Community Forest will be a significant regional recreational, scenic, and ecological asset. ACT will own the forest on behalf of four towns that contributed toward its purchase. Citizens from the towns will manage the forest with ACT, and the towns will share in eventual timber revenue generated.

To celebrate, everyone is invited to a hike on the forest and a community potluck on Sunday, Oct. 13. The hike will start at 10 a.m. at the end of Dyke Road in Sugar Hill. The potluck will start at 5 p.m. at the Easton Town Hall on Route 116 in Easton.  More details are at www.townforest.org.

Easton, Franconia, Landaff, and Sugar Hill each committed $5,000 at their March town meetings to support the $600,000 acquisition.

The property encompasses 844 acres in the northwest corner of Easton, sharing boundaries with Sugar Hill and Landaff. Highlighted by the prominent ridgeline of Cooley Hill, and near the historic Jericho section of Landaff, this upland forest is one of the highest-elevation and largest privately owned properties in the western White Mountains. It is spectacularly beautiful and rugged with stunning views. Recreational opportunities abound for hiking, biking and backcountry skiing. The previous owner had proposed both windmills and large subdivisions for this tract.

For nearly two years, citizens from surrounding communities worked with ACT to raise the funds and build support for the acquisition of the land and to create the community forest. Numerous hikes, bird walks, snowshoe outings were held on the forest, and there were many information sessions and other outreach events in the four participating towns.

ACT had been working quietly with the landowner to reach a purchase agreement. They negotiated a bargain sale, where the purchase price was below the appraised value.

The Northern Forest Center, a non-profit organization and founding member of the Community Forest Collaborative, provided technical assistance and advice throughout the project. It helped facilitate the planning committee, develop fundraising strategies, and explore governance structures, and assisted ACT in grant writing and creating an effective ownership model.  The Cooley-Jericho Community Forest is based on a model developed by the Collaborative that includes local ownership and management, permanent land protection, and ensures that benefits of the property will support many community priorities.

“While the entire property is in Easton, the land has great visual and potential development impact on Sugar Hill and Landaff, and is a significant recreational asset for Franconia,” said ACT Executive Director Rebecca Brown. “But no one town nor ACT could have done this project alone. The property is such a significant regional resource that a community forest was the best option – better than simply the land trust owning it, and better than any one town owning it.”

As a community forest, Brown explained, the proceeds from timber harvesting will go back to the participating towns, as well as pay for the costs of managing the forest itself. The towns can use the revenue however they wish.

Management of the forest will be done by a committee of local residents representing the towns, ACT, and various user groups including hunters, mountain bikers, and educators.

The educational potential of the forest as an outdoor classroom, plus the participation of multiple towns, were reasons the Cooley – Jericho Community Forest ranked #1 in the country for funding from a federal program under the US Forest Service, according to Brown. The federal funding gave the project over half the purchase price. Other funds were raised from the NH Land and Community Heritage Investment Program (LCHIP), the Open Space Institute (OSI), and NH State Conservation Committee through Moose Plate sales. The Davis Conservation Foundation, Fields Pond Foundation, McIninch Foundation, and many individuals also gave generously to the project.

“Cooley-Jericho Community Forest is a standout effort, as illustrated by the widespread support received, including grants from OSI’s Community Forest Fund, “ said Jennifer Melville, OSI VP for conservation grants and loans.  “We congratulate ACT and the four towns for forging a groundbreaking partnership to enable local citizens to conserve and steward their own forests.”

ACT works with communities and families to conserve land for the region’s future. More information is at www.aconservationtrust.org or (603) 823-7777.