Featured
Top 10 Favorite Local Hikes
As we adjust to a new normal, many people are turning to nature for exercise, inspiration, and peace. But it can be hard to know where to go locally and how to get there. To make it easier to find places to go, Franklin Land Trust would like to share our favorite local hiking trails…
Read MoreA Letter from the Executive Director – Coronavirus Update
We are all doing our best, in these challenging days, to maintain our health, our equilibrium, and our productivity. After consultation with our board and with colleagues throughout the non-profit field, we have decided to postpone scheduled gatherings for the month of March and have asked that our staff prepare to work in their home…
Read MoreYear in Review
You made a difference in 2019! You helped to permanently protect important land that provides critical habitat for wildlife, clean air to breathe, and clean water for you and your family. Because of you, FLT has conserved a total of 32,925 acres of forests, farms and waterways over the last 33 years, creating resilient lands…
Read MoreVoluntary Public Access
Do you allow public access on your land? If not, would you consider it? Franklin Land Trust’s Voluntary Public Access Program has money to purchase easements that allow public access on your land. You can choose between temporary (10 years) or permanent public access easements on all or part of your land. Payment rates are…
Read MoreResponding to a Changing Forest
Each year we see the impact of climate change in our region: intense heat and cold; extreme rain and wind events; and shorter winters with less snow cover. These changes have an impact on the plants and animals on the land. As our climate shifts, our forested land will shift with it. Increased pests, invasive…
Read MoreFranklin Land Trust Welcomes New Executive Director
The Franklin Land Trust’s (FLT) Board of Directors and staff welcome their new Executive Director, Thomas S. Curren, to the organization. Tom succeeds Richard Hubbard, who has served as FLT’s executive director since 2004, and during whose tenure the Trust reached the 32,000-acre mark in conserving farms, forests, wildlands, and other natural resources in western…
Read MoreGuyette Farm Forestry: Managing for wildlife and local wood
Overview and Project Partners Franklin Land Trust will be engaged in logging operations at its Guyette Farm Conservation Area on Gloyd St and South Central Street in Plainfield. This work is funded by a Wildlife Habitat Grant from the Department of Fish and Game and will create 17.5 acres of young forest habitat that will…
Read MoreA heartfelt thanks to land preservationists
Greenfield Recorder Those who appreciate the pastoral nature of Franklin County owe that rural ambience to the many landowners and farmers who shield their fields and forests from development. Many of them work with local land trusts to preserve that protection in perpetuity. And so it is we all — residents or visitors, driving or…
Read MoreConserving Land for You (Annual Report)
Thanks to you—our faithful land conservation supporter—significant lands throughout western Massachusetts are now permanently conserved. With your help, the Franklin Land Trust closed out our 31st year with the completion of 11 new projects, permanently protecting 1,032 acres in 2018. Because of you, FLT has helped to conserve a total of 32,000 acres of forests,…
Read MoreWildlife Photos
We have been fortunate to capture some great images and video of moose, bear, bobcat, beaver, and deer on our wildlife camera these last few weeks at a recently conserved property in Hawley, reminding us why we do what we do and the importance of keeping nature wild. Our wildlife camera was purchased as…
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