The Vermont Agency of Natural Resources (ANR) has recently completed a draft long-range management plan for the Camel’s Hump Management Unit, including Camel’s Hump State Park, Camel’s Hump State Forest, Robbins Mountain Wildlife Management Area, and Huntington Gap Wildlife Management Area. Land management plans are drafted and reassessed periodically and are the product of a collaboration among agency experts and public input. These plans determine the Agency’s course of action to protect natural resources, provide recreational opportunities to the public, produce sustainably-harvested forest products, and conserve high-quality wildlife habitat on public land. ANR staff will present the draft plan for public input at a series of open-house meetings during November. The schedule is as follows:
November 9 – Smilie Memorial Elementary School in Bolton
November 15 – Brewster-Pierce Memorial School in Huntington
November 29 – Crossett Brook Middle School in Duxbury
All meetings are open to the public and will run from 6-8 pm. In addition, written comments will be accepted up to close of business day on December 29, 2017 and can be submitted electronically to ANR.CamelsHump@Vermont.gov or through the mail to the VT Department of Forests, Parks & Recreation, 111 West Street, Essex Junction, VT 05452-4695.
The Camel’s Hump Management Unit (CHMU) comprises a portion of one of the largest habitat blocks in the state of Vermont. As such it supports a diverse range of wildlife and natural communities of state-wide importance. It is also a beloved piece of public land which hosts thousands of visitors a year who enjoy hiking, skiing, snowmobiling, biking, hunting, fishing, and more on its nearly 70 miles of trails and throughout its 26,000 acres. “We think the draft plan meets the needs of multiple user groups while still supporting the forest economy and maintaining the fragile and vital natural resources that make this place so special,” says Jason Nerenberg, District Stewardship Forester who leads the district’s interdepartmental stewardship team.
ANR manages state-owned land for a variety of purposes, ranging from the protection of important natural features to public uses of the land in appropriate places. Long-range management plans are developed for all ANR lands. When these plans are created or updated, the public is invited to participate in the planning process. ANR manages approximately 475,000 acres of land (approximately 8 percent of Vermont’s land base) in a combination of fee-simple ownership, conservation easements, and hunting rights.
The CHMU draft plan is available for review at: http://fpr.vermont.gov/state_lands/management_planning/documents/district_pages/district_3/camels_hump_mu