Water, Wetlands, and Optimism

Rindge, N.H. 
228 Acres

It can be hard to remain optimistic about the future. To be sure, the need for conservation has never been greater, and the threats to our environment have never been more visible. How do we retain our optimism? At the Monadnock Conservancy, the projects—and the partnerships that make them possible—are one answer. Through our work, we see firsthand the passion and dedication of so many New Hampshire residents in their pursuit of a better future. The Mattabeseck Wildlife Corridor is one such example of partners coming together to protect land for the future of our region, state, and world.

In Rindge, this 228-acre parcel of land is now protected forever, thanks to a partnership between the Rindge Conservation Commission, which led the town in buying the property, and the Conservancy, which now holds a conservation easement on it. The environmental importance of the land is huge: 30 acres overlie a portion of a groundwater aquifer that serves the Town of Jaffrey’s public water supply. There are 33 acres of wetlands, including 11 vernal pools and confirmed populations of blue-spotted salamanders and a likely population of the state-endangered Blanding’s turtle. A rare black gum-red maple swamp on the property hosts black gum trees more than 250 years old. The land abuts the 1,500-acre Annett State Forest, creating a larger stretch of conserved land that is important for plant and animal species as they adapt to climate change.

Mattabeseck, which means “land between the waters,” comes from the language of the Abenaki people, the original occupants of the region. It is an appropriate epithet for the area, which straddles the watershed divide between the Contoocook and Millers Rivers.

No single tract guarantees the future of our environment, and work remains to be done. However, the partnership that led to the permanent protection of the Mattabeseck Wildlife Corridor is cause for optimism. We thank everyone involved who made this possible, and we hope you will take heart that there are dedicated people in our region working towards a greener future.