Bernie Paquette
The Star guiding Conservation
“The Holy Land is everywhere”
― Black Elk“
Nature is not a place to visit. It is home.”
― Gary Snyder
If we’re going to prevent further erosion of our natural systems and the extinction of more wildlife, humanity will have to adopt a new way of thinking, even a new set of values, not unlike a new religion. - Revoyage of the Mayflower, Herbert A. Raffaele.
* See Prelude (Grandpa and Grandma's story near the bottom of this post).
Dear neighbors,
Our approach to conservation sometimes is to save special places. The conservation easement at Davis Farm (pending) and the Mobbs farm trails in Jericho, Vermont are good examples and worthy of celebrating. However, a few islands of isolated blocks of land will not by themselves save nature, wildlife, and the life of species who deserve to have a place to forage, create a home, raise their young, and become part of and contribute to a working biological foundation for all life.
Scientists are learning more every day about plants and insects that expand our view of what their lives are like; bumblebees shown to take part in playful activities, insects shown to experience pain, plants deciding when to offer pollen and nectar, baby turtles making sounds while still inside their shells, insects capable of thinking beyond instinct to decide the best course of action. Our recognition of life forms and our knowledge of life behaviors in other species are growing, while respect for these diverse species' right to exist is slowly catching up.
Preserving Place: The local effort to conserve land for both nature and people is a main part of the Jericho Conservation Committee’s focus. They advise on best practices for the management of natural resources on Town Land, they are committed to public education and strive to help Jericho residents learn more about the natural communities within our town and beyond.
One important step that the JCC has taken is having professionals identify and prioritize blocks of land that are unique places, ecological priorities for Jericho's resiliency. Some are critical in their value of protecting wildlife habitat including their role as wildlife *corridors for animals to move from one habitat area to another. Changed or impaired connectivity risks impacting biodiversity.
*"Ensuring that protected and other conserved areas are well-connected across landscapes as part of ecological networks, will both maintain biodiversity and provide an opportunity for species to adapt to climate change as local conditions change." - International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
The community as a whole must aspire to protect the ecosystems and the many life forms that support them. As Alicia Daniel (VT Naturalist Program) states in Our Better Nature, Saving biodiversity is impossible work to do alone. We need to do this work in community.
How we make that happen logistically requires creative solutions that favor the land owner's needs, and desires, and come from the heart of all who understand that nature is not a place to visit, it is home.
Making an honest attempt to create healthy relationships I think we might be well served to periodically hold, informal, face-to-face relationship-building time, and events, with large bloc land owners to have a better ground floor approach and working relationship before the land owners decide to sell and or develop their land. Find out what is important to them regarding their land, what their land ethic is, and what they need from their land.
My feelings are bolstered upon reading "Without A Farmhouse Near" by Deborah Rawson and absorbing the story (part of which Maeve had relayed to me some years ago) about the (at the time) proposed 'condo' or 'housing for the elderly on the Tillotson property. Appreciably the development was greatly *downsized with a large portion of the land left undeveloped and now well-managed by some members of the Tillotson H.O.A.
Yet, what particularly strikes me is the missed opportunity to have this ecologically unique and important tract conserved (via the Land Trust) with the same resulting advantage to the landowner as the development provided. More so that this lost opportunity slipped away, perhaps due to hard feelings in a situation where the land owner felt ostracized (my words) from her own community (while the community never felt their quarrel was with her). My main question is focused on the ends to the mean, the process to work out the best result whatever that may be.
By bringing different stakeholders' perspectives, values, and needs closer to each other, synergy can be fostered to mitigate trade-offs and losses and maximize gains for all parties.
As author Vermont author Alex Hastings said, a different slant of light illuminates new corners. To gain those different perspectives we need to seek them out in varying venues, be willing to listen to and discuss views and perspectives that are different than ours, dropping our pre-judgments and the feeling that our solution is surely the right one. Discussing to learn from each other rather than selling or defending our position better addresses complex problems. I don't need to be right, I do want to be part of the solutions.
Another example of a community working with a landowner intent on selling their land is the Old Mill Park property. Initially, negotiations with the owners and the JULT stalled. With the JULT blessing, WNRCD approached the family. They all then worked with the zoning administrator, JULT, and the Jericho Historical Society and reached an agreement. The land was eventually conserved and is now owned by WNRCD and is open to the public. Five Jericho volunteer organizations actively supported the project. Source: The History of Jericho Vermont Vol III. With a will, commitment, perseverance, and creativity a way was found to meet the communal result desired and the individual (landowners') desired results.
We can have differing opinions and circumstances without being alienated from each other. Still, some folks for any number of reasons, do not wish to discuss their land, other folk's land, or even conservation in general. I as well as others I am sure, respect that decision. I thank them, our forebears, and all landowners in Jericho for their land stewardship that makes the fabric of our landscape what it is today.
This is from the Vermont Land Trust:
We now have affordable housing challenges to manage, which can place added pressure on the remaining undeveloped land in Jericho and added complexity to our land use decisions. Big issues take lots of time and (I think) continuity of discussion with all stakeholders. Each lot of land is likely unique in its attributes and the values people assign to it. We must balance systematic approaches with the context of individual locations, goals, and priorities, and balance tradeoffs in each situation.
When we understand each other's thinking we won't none of us be surprised by any of our actions.
We are fortunate to have a dedicated group of professionals on the Jericho Conservation Committee who work hard to develop policies and as importantly seek public engagement to conserve land for nature and people. We are fortunate to have landowners who care and are responsible for their land. We are fortunate to have community members who support land stewardship and conservation where most needed.
To find that guiding star that leads us to the promised land we need only step out onto any natural area that tells us we are home.
To reach sustainable and just solutions we must acknowledge multiple perceptions, beliefs, and values. Progressing toward sustainability through land use is often about negotiating fair and acceptable trade-offs and compensations. - From "Ten facts about land systems for sustainability."
Just as land connectivity is important to animals, so too is a connected network of community members, land owners, and policymakers speaking and listening to each other, understanding each other's needs, working together for common solutions, best land practices, and continuously developing well thought out and planned processes leading to wise conservation actions.
It's not hard to have a conversation with neighbors, just start conversing; just as easy to talk about conservation, simply switch a few letters around and you're having a conversation about conservation!
Complex issues like land sales, consideration of options, thinking through the desired next best use for a specific land tract and recognizing trade-offs, all take time yet often must be rushed through due to a death in the owner's family, or another sudden or unexpected change in circumstances.
I hope you will join me in contemplating activities to have more face-to-face informal meetings as land owners and as community members. The better we know each other's values, needs, and perspectives, the easier it is to tackle, together, great challenges and to do so well in advance of short deadlines.
As our spaces become smaller, we can race to get the last spot or we can slow down, talk, listen, and share the various needs and the optimum uses for our lands and come to a common ground well before the sale or development, or conservation or other land use transition time.
In Jericho, competing and overlapping claims to land use is a central issue to us all, as are the land use decisions and their inherent tradeoffs that will have long-reaching and long-lasting (multi-generational) impacts on people and the planet.
What are your aspirations for the Jericho landscape for your property stewardship, and for the habitat of both nature and people?
I ask you, can we govern land for sustainability? How might we drive more focused discussions on the key functions of land (food, nature, sense of place, housing)? How will we engage with all the stakeholders’ values and goals to contribute to transforming trade-offs into synergies?
Actionable Items:
Would you be interested in participating in any of the following to make meaningful connections with each other and with nature?
- Families joining guided outings under the heading Jericho Families in Nature (JFiN). Please contact Abbey, the DRML youth librarian, or me if you are interested in joining a steering committee to develop the JFiN program or volunteering as a guide. Walks begin in April 2023.
- Jericho Planning Commission Meeting links (Feb 8 topic: Land Use)
- Jericho's Conservation Reserve Fund (CRF for short) is a taxpayer-funded account that is always available to assist Jericho residents in pursuing funding assistance for conservation easement purposes. More info on this is available at the Conservation Commission's link on the town webpage.
- Design and create new incentives for conservation efforts.
- Organize community engagement opportunities, centered around food, featuring music, incorporating hikes along community trails, and stream or river-themed events.
- Integrate conservation into housing development strategies.
- Sharing examples of home-owner property modifications supporting habitat restoration.
- Learn about Riparian buffer's best management practices.
- Also, I invite you to join me in taking advantage of the many offerings on the JCC website to help you with each of your land stewardship actions.
- Create opportunities to walk through your land with natural resource professionals, like forest managers, biologists, and even entomologists.
- Contact your VT state legislature(s) and ask them to establish a Forest Ecosystem Advisory Council in Vermont.
Conservation Research Programs may influence private land owners' behavior:
- Direct interaction with researchers (one on one or community conversations, sharing findings)
- Interaction with peers (establishing social norms - conservation behaviors)
- Program events (interactions between land owners, peers, and researchers) Demonstrate the feasibility of land management practices.
- Program communications - Informative.
- Manage property for conservation purposes
- Learn about plants and animals on their property
- Mentor or seek membership from land owners or land managers
- Donate to a conservation organization
- Participate in additional research projects
- Volunteer for a research program
- When we come together based on values that we all share, we can co-act on those values, and we can do things that benefit our community as a whole, and protect the ecosystems that make the world a liveable place.
Public Engagement for People & Nature
Bernie
I believe in
Listening to diverse points of view, and taking the time to best understand the complexities of complex interactions. I don't need to be right, I need to be part of and active in the discussion for solutions.
Building a coalition and consensus.
Land Stewardship: Improving Wildlife Habitat
Disclosure: I am not a member of the Jericho Conservation Commission.
Notations:
- "From 2001 to 2017, the United States lost a football field’s worth of natural area every 30 seconds and if these trends continue, an analysis conducted by Conservation Science Partners published in 2019 determined that a South Dakota-sized expanse of natural places will disappear between now and 2050!" - Wild Ones org.
- Vermont's primary land use planning goal: To plan development to maintain the historic settlement pattern of compact, village, and urban centers separated by rural countryside.
- We often talk about ‘soil use’ is often a better frame. We don’t have much of it, it’s depleting & demands are growing.
- The Tillotson development: In 1984, the last proposal (much smaller than the original proposal) which was rejected involved 29 small two-bedroom units, 58 bedrooms. What finally was agreed to and is in place today (estimate) is 11 houses with 44 bedrooms.
Recommended reading:
- Bill Schubart: Is this a January thaw or an apocalyptic warning?
- Ten facts about land systems for sustainability
- Why Land Use Is Such an Important Issue for Our Times
- State of the Union Report for Jericho
- David Brynn: Time for a forest ecosystem advisory council in Vermont. It is time for a Forest Ecosystem Advisory Council in Vermont.
COMMENTS:
In terms of speaking with the landowners of specific blocks of land, it's nice to find a reason to walk at least some of the land together with a natural resource scientist. Being on the property together sets a nice tone and moving through the woods or fields relaxes people. Landowners are proud of their property and having a professional scientist pointing things out makes them even more proud. Ask them what are their hopes and dreams for that land in the next 5, 10, or 25 years. That kind of gives you a starting point for conversation.
If you want I can put you in touch with Andrea Morgante, of the Hinesburg Land Trust. She's done more than anyone in terms of motivating landowners to conserve land in Hinesburg. - Pat, Hinesburg
The Loss of Biodiversity chart is from biodiversity loss.
2022 Webinar | The Human Dimensions of Conservation
Rachael Green
(starts at 5:06)
Conservation Research for building conservation behaviors
- Landowners have direct interaction with researchers. One-on-one conversations, sharing research findings or participating in a community discussion.
- Direct interaction with peers. Establishing social norms surrounding conservation behaviors.
- Program events. Foster interactions between researchers, land owners, and peers. Illustrate the feasibility of land management practices.
- Program Communications. Providing information on conservation issues, and ecological study results.
- Additionally, citizen scientists can aid in data collection and also be influenced as above.
Possible influence of participation in conservation research (towards engaging in conservation behaviors)
- Manage property for conservation purposes
- Invasive removal
- Delayed haying or mowing (to accommodate grassland breeding birds)
- Planting natives
- Managing areas for pollinators
- Learn about plants and animals on the property
- Mentor or seek mentorship from landowners or land managers
- Casual learning through Newsletters (motivation), books, online, iNaturalist
- Donate to a conservation organization
- Participate in additional conservation projects
- Volunteer for conservation program
- Landowners inspired by what they saw for conservation efforts on other properties.
Potential Engagement in Conservation behaviors outcomes
- Learn environmental skills
- Direct management outcomes
- Interaction with other landowners, land managers, and researchers
- On-site survey interactions motivate to learn more about species on the property and the impact of specific types of land management.
- Research reports utilized for management decisions on the land.
Recommendations
- Tailor communications to the target audience including personalized or site-specific information.
- Events for direct interactions between landowners, their peers, and researchers (Lecture based events).
- Encourage engagement in conservation events, research, and citizen science programs as these increase conservation behaviors.
- Include training, participation in research, and opportunities for interaction with researchers, peers, and citizen scientists.
- Facilitate conservation property tours.
- Publish Newsletters for learning about conservation issues and insights into programs.
Greatest impact - most influential
- Involve private landowners in research (and reports) on their land
- Program events, on-site survey interactions, landowner reports
- Participation as citizen scientist - ecological monitoring, events, and frequent newsletters
Potential research projects
- Camera trapping
- Grassland bird ecology (Bobolink surveys)
- Native plant communities (survey)
- Pollinator monitoring
- Invasive monitoring, mapping, and management
Ways to create, manage, or restore wildlife habitat on the property
- Plant natives
- Remove invasives
- Delay mowing
- Restore habitat
- Reduce or eliminate pesticide use
Event and research program goals (behaviors and actions)
- Connect with peers
- Increase environmental and general scientific knowledge
- Create wildlife habitat on private land
- Create wildlife habitat on public land
- Contribute data to a conservation-based citizen science project
- Talk to others about conservation issues
- Educate themselves about environmental issues
- Participate in local conservation group
- Collaborate with others on conservation activities
- Support conservation issues through civic engagement
- Donate money for conservation or environmental issues
Events
- Cultivate scientific engagement
- Foster social relationships
- Field-based events with direct interactions during events
- Lecture-based events include a field component.
- Interact with landowners before, during, and after site visits, about the research, answer questions, participate in the field research, and suggest where the landowner can get more technical information regarding the land conservation practices.
Communications
- Landowner reports (best for landowners)
- Monthly newsletters and annual reports
- Seasonable small calls-to-action
VAWorkingLandscape.org
5 Principles of Conservation Land Management
Get to know the land
- Inventory
- Plants
- Birds
- Soils
- Mammals
- Water
- Other
We ARE nature
- The land is a community to which we belong
- We are part of the ecosystem
- Balance and compromise are key
Ecosystem
- Network of interactions
- A biological community of interacting organisms and their physical environment. Network of interconnected systems. (Oxford)
- The complex of a community of organisms and its environment functioning as an ecological unit (Merriam-Webster)
Resources
- We can eat invasive plants
- Edibles and medicinals
Exposure to nature improves well-being
Manage for, not just against
- Promote and support native species in high-priority areas
Land management is a process
- Think long term
Bradley method of Invasive species management
- Begin in undisturbed natural areas, working out toward more heavily infested areas.
- Limit environment disturbance
- Develop a plan for post removal
Perspective
- Not showy to the human eye may be valuable to wildlife.
- Specialist bees can only get resources from one or a few plants
Key practices to support biodiversity on your land
Reduce Lawn, Plant Natives
- Find natives that are already there & support them
- Incorporate native plants (aim for 70 to 80% native over time)
- Reserve mowed lawn for recreation areas and walking paths
- Plant host plants near the ‘meal’ (pollen & nectar) plants
- Plant a variety of grasses, trees, shrubs, perennials, annuals, colors, flower shapes, seasonality of bloom, host plants, both pollen and nectar resources, nuts and berry plants, local and endemic species.
- Plant for specialist bees
- Mow fields (if you need to mow) tall growth in early spring only, not in fall. Tall grasses offer habitat and seeds throughout the year including in fall and winter.
- Leave the leaves, particularly under trees within the drip line.
Consider entire life cycles
- Nesting resources
- Leave some open ground especially sandy areas for ground nesters
- Logs and trunks
- Plant stalks & Stem stubble (cut about 15” above ground)
- Snags, dead trees, brush piles, bramble (blackberry) patches
Consider groups of species
- Your efforts might not bring in any one species but may bring in others
Avoid fungicides, herbicides, rodenticides
- Put up owl boxes to help manage rodents
- Put up bat boxes
Aim for connectivity/corridors for species to move
Protect wetlands and riparian habitats. Provide water for birds, and insects.
Consider below ground.
- Leave the leaves
Keep cats indoors
Purchase bird-friendly coffee
Community engagement and collaboration
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