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DCR posts public meetings in Worcester Telegram today

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DCR posts public meetings in Worcester Telegram today

Postby jsongy » Mon Dec 28, 2009 10:15 pm

WESTBORO ? Continuing to involve the public in planning the future of state forests, the state Department of Conservation and Recreation will sponsor five public forums in February to discuss draft recommendations on the stewardship and management of forest lands within the state parks system.

The DCR began the Forest Futures Visioning Process last spring to determine how best to manage the myriad public benefits and values of forest land within the agency?s parks system. That includes recreation, tourism, aesthetics, renewable forest products, habitat diversity, landscape ecology and how to strike the appropriate balance among them. The process has several components, including forming an advisory group of stakeholders and the Technical Steering Committee, which includes academics, practitioners and scientists; it is developing draft recommendations with input from the public and the stakeholders.

?We are committed to having an open, wide-ranging, public conversation about forests in Massachusetts,? said DCR Commissioner Richard K. Sullivan Jr. ?We had three public forums and forest tours over the summer, and we look forward to the Technical Steering Committee?s recommendations and hearing public comment.?

The Department of Conservation and Recreation contracted with the Massachusetts Office of Dispute Resolution & Public Collaboration at the University of Massachusetts in Boston to develop a design for the public process. Among the forums in the summer was one in Leominster that included a visit to the Crow Hill Wildlife conservation area.

Among the upcoming public forums is one scheduled for 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Feb. 4, at the Westboro Public Library, 55 West Main St. The snow date is Feb. 16.

The other forums are 10 a.m. to noon Feb. 6 at the North Adams Public Library, 74 Church St., North Adams; 2 to 4 p.m. in Melville Hall, Room 201, at Berkshire Community College, 1350 West St., Pittsfield; 5 to 7 p.m. Feb. 9 at the Jones Library, 43 Amity St., Amherst; and 5 to 7 p.m. Feb. 11 at the Taunton Public Library, 12 Pleasant St., Taunton.

The Technical Steering Committee is composed of 20 people who have expertise in the issues, trends and best practices of forest conservation and ecology, invasive species, landscape ecology, natural resource economics and law, recreation, silviculture, social policy, aesthetics, watersheds and wildlife habitat.

The draft recommendations will be posted soon on the Web site of the Department of Conservation and Recreation, www.mass.gov/dcr. The public is encouraged to review the recommendations and comment on them by sending e-mail to MODRDCRFFVP@umb.edu. The Technical Steering Committee is expected to make its final recommendations to the state later in the winter.
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