HEBRON CONSERVATION COMMISSION

The Committee meets the fourth Wednesday of the month in the Land Use Building in the upstairs meeting room at 7:00 p.m.

Members
Martha Twombly (Chairperson) (13)
Bruce Barnard (14)
David Goldthwaite (12)
Suzanne Smith (13)
Arthur Cummings (Alternate) (14)
Travis Austin (Alternate) (13)
Gregory Melton (Alternate) (14)
**********************************

Meeting Minutes

*************************************

Natural Resource Inventory -  April 2011

Rapid Ecological Assessment - Hebron Town Forest - April 2011

        ********************************************************************************
Greetings from the Hebron Conservation Commission

     

    We are constantly reminded of how fortunate our little town of Hebron is, with its beautiful
    landscapes, historic and lovely village center, and its open lands that are available for all of us
    and our visitors to enjoy. Every year we see more and more folks enjoying the town by their
    favorite mode, whether it’s walking, bicycling, horseback riding, snow shoeing, skiing, or snowmobiling.

 

 

    Our Budget. The Conservation Commission funding this year has been invested on:

      • Completing the survey of the “reserved area” on the Hebron Town Forest for recording;
      • Contracting with the Lakes Region Planning Commission to create a set of baseline Natural Resource Inventory maps; and
      • Hiring a naturalist to perform the initial fieldwork and write a report for the Natural Resource Inventory.
      • Commission member participation in educational workshops, and purchasing books to build our resource library (available for public reference in the Land Use room).
         
      • Natural Resource Inventory
        Creating a NRI is         an important first step in quantifying the types and locations of all the natural resources in Hebron (wildlife habitat, historic, cultural, geological and water resources, natural communities and rare species).

    Amanda Stone from UNH Cooperative Extension, Dave Jeffers from the Lakes Region Planning Commission, and Denyce Gagne, natural resource specialist, attended our CC meetings to help us plan for our NRI. Hebron can incorporate this information into the Master Plan to inform future planning for land and resource use or conservation where appropriate. We’ll schedule a public presentation of the resource maps as soon as they become available during the first quarter of 2010.

          Specific activities by the Conservation Commission members included:

    Stewarding the Hebron Town Forest. We’ve been exploring, bushwhacking, boundary marking, trail clearing, and making access safe for the public. Thank you David Goldthwaite for removing old, rusted barbed wire from the edges of the fields in the “reserved area” to prevent risk of accidents by folks exploring these areas. The wire also poses a hazard for deer or moose, where it is occasionally head-high and stretches between trees. Snowmobilers should be reminded to stay on the marked trails to avoid any wire that still may be out there.

             

    Several trips were made into the forest to clear the main trail to Spectacle Pond, (trail crew – Travis Austin, Suzanne Smith, Arthur Cummings, Bruce Barnard). Members also began to clear the former logging road around the large wetland as a prelude to creating an educational trail.

     Boundaries have been located and marked with our new Hebron Town Forest boundary medallions.

    On “Hebron Family Day” Martha led six hikers on a walk to Spectacle Pond for a picnic lunch, noting signs of wildlife along the way.

    In October Suzanne led the Newfound Tracking Team up to some spectacular ledges and rock outcrops overlooking the Cockermouth River valley. The CC hopes to increase the number of walks and activities taking place in the Hebron Town Forest in the future. Ideas are welcome!

    Vernal Pool Workshop - Laura Doane led members on a field trip to visit a vernal pool to learn about this particularly valuable type of wetland. Because vernal pools are often ephemeral (they dry up), and because they have no inlet or outlet (thus no fish), they are the only breeding ground for unique amphibians that are unable to breed anywhere else. We’ll have a spring field trip too, when the vernal pools become active again.

    For 2010

    Hebron Town Forest

    Jon Martin, forester with ForeCo in Rumney, will be performing a timber cruise and developing a forest management plan for the Hebron Town Forest in 2010. CC members hope to accompany Jon during his field recons, to learn more about the forest, and to assess the landscape for the location of public walking trails.

    The CC hopes to work with the Hardy Mountain Snowmobile Club to design and build seasonal boardwalks to improve safety for crossing the larger streams along the trail to Spectacle Pond. We are also investigating the possibility of creating a trail from the Hebron Beach to the Hebron Town Forest.

    Workshops – we welcome your input, and plan to have more field activities in the Hebron Town Forest, and other locations by request.

    CC welcomes the public to attend our regular monthly meetings held the fourth Wednesday of each month, at 7 PM in the Land Use Office. We also want to remind you that we have a library of resources about wildlife, forestry, natural communities and water resource protection – this information is for your use and benefit.

    Respectfully Submitted,

    Martha Twombly, Chair, David Goldthwaite, Vice-Chair, Travis Austin, Bruce Barnard, Roger LaFontaine, Arthur Cummings, Suzanne Smith, and Ed Gempka

**********************************
Welcome to the Hebron Town Forest 

    Please click here for a brief pictorial tour
    of the Hebron Town Forest.

Hebron Town Forest - Summer 2010 Town Meeting Presentation and Forest Stewardship Plan  - Click Here

Links of Interest

TAKING ACTION FOR WILDLIFE WORK PLAN
Revised December 2, 2010

BEAVER DAM BREACH REPORT
Review of Beaver Dam Breach Potential & Hazards
BY KLEINSCHMIDT ENERGY & WATER RESOURCE CONSULTANTS

A Field Guide to Common Aquatic and Riparian Plants of New Hampshire,
NH Department of Environmental Services

Turtle Shells No Match For Tires-Give Turtles A Brake
Mike Marshand, New Hampshire Fish & Game

UNH Wildlife Habitat Series :
http://extension.unh.edu/Wildlife/HabitatStewardshipSeries.htm

***********************************

           

Wood Turtle in Cockermouth River north of Braley Road Bridge 2007               

             

                                        

             Hebron Marsh                                             Baby Fox on Hobart Hill Rd 

    Lake opening 2-21-2010                               Merrill Irises   George Road

Racing on Newfound Lake 2-21-2010