Sounds of splintering wood crackled along a brief stretch of town open space off Stone Bridge Trail in Sandy Hook on Sunday, January 22.

On either side of the dirt lane that leads toward town open space and the lower Paugussett Forest are wooded areas, some of which are being partially cleared. In past months the Inland Wetlands Commission (IWC) had approved plans to remove timber from a 34-acre town open space tract near Stone Bridge Trail and Nighthawk Lane in Sandy Hook. The project is reportedly intended to create improved habitat for New England cottontail rabbits, plus 47 other species, according to the Conservation Commission.

An additional 10.8 acres nearby, which hold oak and northern hardwoods, will be thinned out by removing between one-third and one-half of the trees standing there. When harvesting at that site is complete, about 8.8 acres nearby will have half the trees left standing. About two acres will have two-thirds of the trees left standing.

A buffer strip of trees, ranging between 50 and 75 feet wide and located along Stone Bridge Trail will retain two-fifths to three-fifths of its existing trees. The unimproved road leads from Berkshire Road (Route 34) and into the open space where trails offer passive recreation.

An estimated 145,000 board feet of saw timber is being removed in the harvest.

In documents provided by Deputy Director of Planning, Land Use and Emergency Management Rob Sibley, are details of a contract between a harvester and the town, which will receive payment from the harvester. The bid is signed by Don Moon of Don Moon Logging of Burlington, Conn., who submitted a bid of $22,333 to complete the proposed forest management activity and purchase the roughly 270 cords from that site.