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Green Mountain Project Aims To Curb Illegal Tree Cutting

WAMC Northeast Public Radio | By Dave Lucas
Published December 26, 2015 at 11:07 AM EST
file picture of skiing in Vermont
John Atkinson/Ski Vermont

A pilot program in Vermont is trying to keep backcountry skiers from illegally cutting down trees to open up trails.

Officials with the Green Mountain National Forest are hoping the Brandon Gap project will curb the unsanctioned cutting and expand terrain at the same time. Large amounts of illegal cutting were discovered on state lands in Middlebury.

Vermont Public Radio  reports volunteers have been thinning trees and brush under the supervision of National Forest Service personnel for the past several weeks.

Green Mountain National Forest district recreational program manager Holly Knox says a 210-acre parcel of national forest straddling the towns of Rochester, Goshen and Chittenden is being used as testing ground.

The size of all new ski trails will be limited to between 15 and 30 feet wide.

(C) 2015 AP
Tags
North Country News Vermont Ski SeasonGreen Mountain National ForestVermont Skiing
Dave Lucas
Dave Lucas is WAMC’s Capital Region Bureau Chief. Born and raised in Albany, he’s been involved in nearly every aspect of local radio since 1981. Before joining WAMC, Dave was a reporter and anchor at WGY in Schenectady. Prior to that he hosted talk shows on WYJB and WROW, including the 1999 series of overnight radio broadcasts tracking the JonBenet Ramsey murder case with a cast of callers and characters from all over the world via the internet. In 2012, Dave received a Communicator Award of Distinction for his WAMC news story "Fail: The NYS Flood Panel," which explores whether the damage from Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee could have been prevented or at least curbed. Dave began his radio career as a “morning personality” at WABY in Albany.
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