February 26 Forest Talk—

Yale Students Offer Forest Studies On Saturday

By Kendra Bobowick

Taking a deeper look into Newtown’s forests recently were graduate students from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. Saturday, February 26, at 10 am, at the Newtown Municipal Center, they will present their findings and recommendations based on in-depth evaluations they have performed on some parcels of land. The talk, sponsored by the Conservation Commission, is open to the public.

“Like everyone, we’re aware of deterioration [in the forests] as time goes on because of overdevelopment,” said commission member Marjorie Cramer. “The forests are not healthy and we need to learn more.”

Although she realizes that forests would “seem to manage themselves, due to overdevelopment, they do not.”

Her commission members began looking for solutions, which they found with Yale Professor Mark Ashton and his students. They assessed three open space parcels that the Conservation Commission members identified: Pole Bridge, Stone Bridge, and Pond Brook.

Their objectives included preparation of a plan to maintain the forest health and control invasive species, improve the wildlife habitat, provide environmental education, create trails and other recreational opportunities, and address deer and tick issues.

Commission member Adria Henderson said, “Needless to say, all of these areas are of importance to the commission for these three newly purchased properties, as well as for the rest of the forested areas of Newtown.”

The students and professor “have been a delight,” Ms Cramer said. Their different backgrounds in birds, tress, etc “makes them a fabulous group.”

Ms Cramer hopes residents will attend. “We’re really interested in having people in town become educated and learn what we need to be doing.” Some future work clearing invasives and managing the forest habitat will require volunteer efforts, and possibly funding, she said. She hopes that residents will understand the commission’s forest management efforts, which should address forest health for “at least the next several decades,” Ms Cramer explained.

Professor Ashton is a Morris K. Jesup professor of silviculture and forest ecology.

For more information contact commission member Mary Wilson at mhgwilson@sbcglobal.net or call 203-426-6518.