Hemlock Response Consensus Reached - July 17, 2019

Published on July 17, 2019

In This Update
  • Working Group Reaches Consensus Recommendation for Response to Hemlock
  • Woolly Adelgid at the Franklin-McElheny Preserve in Rollinsford
  • Community Site Walk Scheduled for Monday, August 26 from 4-6 PM to Explain Proposed Plan.

Overview
The Franklin-McElheny Preserve Working Group met monthly from December 2018 to June 2019, including one meeting when the Group was led by Kyle Lombard from the New Hampshire Division of Forests and Lands on a walk through the Preserve to observe current conditions. During the course of its deliberations, the Group considered a wide range of factors affecting the Preserve and plans to manage forest health in light of the infestation by the Hemlock Woolly Adelgid (HWA). 

These included: the intentions of the initial deeds by the landowners when the land was conveyed to
SELT, the rate and spread of the HWA infestation, the current and anticipated state of wildlife habitat in the forest, property use by Bald Eagles, trail safety for public visitors, the aesthetic impact of management options, the financial costs and benefits of management options, and SELT’s mission to steward its land holdings in a responsible and sustainable manner.

The Working Group considered a full range of options, from doing nothing other than
removing trees that fall onto trails, to the comprehensive “shelterwood” management plan
originally proposed in 2018.

Consensus Recommendation
The Group consensus was to take a two-phase approach. In the first phase, to begin in the spring of 2020, harvesting will focus on the most damaged hemlock stands such as on the eastern edge of the property, near the river and along adjacent trails. The intention of this cut is to remove hazard trees along the trails, as well as to remove hemlocks in a more advanced stage of decline elsewhere on the property, which will allow more sunlight to reach the forest floor and encourage regeneration of seedlings.

The specific trees to be cut will be marked by a professional forester, and the public will be invited to walk through the property to see the areas to be affected. The date for this site walk is Monday, August 26 from 4-6 pm. If you plan to attend, please register here so we can notify you of changes due to weather or other circumstances.

Phase Two will occur sometime in the next 3 to 10 years. Before then, the emphasis will be on observing the continued effects of the HWA infestation and on the overall health of the forest, including the areas affected in Phase One as well as the rest of the property. There is a strong desire to observe and document the forest during this time period, perhaps using volunteer “citizen scientists” to help monitor changes. 

Information obtained through direct observation of the rate of decline of the remaining hemlocks as well as the response of seedling regeneration from Phase One will determine the timing, scope and nature of Phase Two harvesting on the remainder of the property. To reasonably ensure safe recreation on the Preserve during this time, SELT will continue to remove dead or dying hemlocks along or near the Preserve’s trails.

Next Steps
SELT’s Stewardship Committee and Board of Directors will consider and vote on the recommended plan in September. If it is approved and once costs are understood, SELT will pursue funding as needed, which may include enlisting the help of local residents to voluntarily raise or donate funds to help offset the anticipated increased costs of this two-phased management approach.

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