Declaration of Support for Public Forests

Note- this resolution passed unanimously at the Connecticut State Grange Convention, October 2018.

WHEREAS a forest is a self-sustaining ecosystem, and New England’s natural landscape is predominantly forested, and

WHEREAS public forests are held in the public trust, and for the benefit of current and future generations, and

WHEREAS an intact forest ecosystem is biodiverse, allows for and even thrives on natural disturbances, and is the most resource-efficient approach to stewardship and conservation, and

WHEREAS intact unmanaged forests provide the highest level of ecosystem services such as flood and erosion control, and carbon storage and absorption, and

WHEREAS trees can live for hundreds of years, natural old forests are treasured by the public and valued highly by scientists, and are now extremely rare – less than 1% of the landscape in Southern New England, and

WHEREAS tax dollars are used to log public forests.

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that State policies regarding public forests prioritize and maximize:

  • public health and safety, quiet reflection, enjoyment of nature, and a sense of wildness;
  • long-term ecosystem integrity and economic services such as carbon storage, flood control and compatible recreation;
  • restoration and protection of natural old forests and old growth ecological characteristics, and;
  • periodic long-term monitoring by a team of scientific professionals (including a forest ecologist, climate scientist, plant and wildlife biologist, recreation specialist) to begin to accumulate knowledge of natural forests during relevant timescales (hundreds of years).