BETHEL — The Bethel Community Forest Project planning committee has announced that the U.S. Forest Service ranked the project first out of 34 applications from across the country.

The service provided a $600,000 grant, bringing the community closer to its goal to acquire and create the Bethel Community Forest. The Betterment Fund has offered to match every dollar up to $30,000 raised from the local community.

To donate, go to tpl.org/bethelcommunityforest or mail a check to The Trust for Public Land, 30 Danforth St., Suite 106, Portland, ME 04102. 

The local community, in partnership with Mahoosuc Pathways, The Trust for Public Land and the Northern Forest Center, is working to protect 978 acres to create the Bethel Community Forest — a community-managed open space to be shared by residents. The property, directly adjacent to Mahoosuc Land Trust’s Valentine Farm, will provide direct, legal access to the 2,400-acre Bingham Forest, create miles of new multi-use trails, help bolster the area’s outdoor recreation economy, protect working forest land and wildlife habitat, and improve access to a close-to-home outdoor space.

The goal is to acquire the property by March 2019. Mahoosuc Pathways will own the land on behalf of the community. The community, led by a locally-managed planning committee, is in charge of deciding how the land will be used and stewarded once it is acquired. 

To support The Trust for Public Land, visit www.tpl.org.

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