Program areas at SELT
LAND CONSERVATION SELT conserved or assisted in the protection of 552 acres of land through 14 projects. Conservation work continued to focus on four key areas Living Landscapes, Clean Drinking Water, the Pawtuckaway to Great Bay Greenway initiative, and Farmland for the Future. Projects include SELT acquisition of fee lands and easements and assisting federal partners in acquiring conservation easements. Under our Living Landscapes initiative, SELT completed seven projects, with the highlight being two generous donations, one of fee interest to 76 acres along the Lamprey River and is now known as the Robert Rix Family Forest. The second donation was a 37-acre conservation easement along Hog Hill Brook, a regionally significant wildlife connectivity corridor, in Atkinson. Other Living Landscape projects included two wetland mitigation projects working in partnership with the NH Department of Environmental Services and municipal partners. CONTINUED ON SCHEDULE O
OUTREACH EDUCATION SELT successfully implemented a nature-based education program ATLAS All-Terrain Learning Adventures with the Epping School District and White Pine Programs, serving grades K-5 through both engagement in the schools and via field trips to SELT Burley Farms. SELT continued its partnership with the White Pine Programs to host youth programming at the Burley Farms via monthly programming and summer camps. In addition to the work done with local school aged community members, SELT offered 64 outreach events including field trips, excursions, and a quarterly book club. In October, SELT launched a monthly Wildlife Wednesday series, which featured expert guest speakers in the Pratt Family Community Room of the Nan and George Center for People and Nature. In April, SELT hosted the Wild Scenic Film Festival which had over 650 attendees and was offered both in person and virtually. CONTINUED ON SCHEDULE O
LAND MANAGEMENT By the end of 2022, SELT owned 41 reservations totaling more than 10,450 acres, with all lands being visited for monitoring purposes. SELT lands continue to be well visited by the public due to an increased interest in outdoor recreation. SELT created early successional habitat and performed Forest Stand Improvement at the Birch Ridge Community Forest in New Durham. Management activities including forest stand improvement and providing forest openings for at-risk species was finished on Zanard Forest in Nottingham. The Organization also conducted trail planning and the installation of recreational infrastructure including trails and parking at Birch Ridge Community Forest, Spruce Swamp Conservation Area in Brentwood/Fremont, Stonehouse Forest in Barrington, the Collins Family Forest in New Durham and Harveys Kennard Hill Forest in Epping, SELT maintains more than 70 miles of trails in total.