Andrews Community Forest Committee
Meets 4th Monday of the month at 6:00 PM in the Richmond Town Center Building
WELCOME!
The Andrews Community Forest is part of one of Vermont’s largest remaining expanses of interior forest and highly ranked for its own biodiversity and ecological integrity. The Town of Richmond was able to acquire it thanks to the generosity of the Andrews family as well as outstanding help from the Vermont Housing and Conservation Board, the Vermont Land Trust, Richmond’s Conservation Reserve Fund, and many private donors. In 2018 the Town conserved it for its “landscape connectivity and natural resource, recreational and aesthetic values.” The Forest is managed by the Town’s Andrews Community Forest Committee.
Visiting
The Forest is open to the public from dawn to dusk for a wide range of recreational activities. The parking area is 2½ miles east of the traffic light in Richmond Village. Ticks are abundant — so be sure to check for them after you leave. Biking is permitted on designated trails – please check and download the map below. Hunting is also permitted per State regulations. Dogs must be kept on leashes and waste removed.
Come to an ACF Committee meeting
Bring your questions, ideas and curiosity to meetings of the Andrews Community Forest Committee. Meetings are held on the fourth Monday of the month in the evening, unless specified otherwise. Times and agendas are posted on Front Porch Forum and on the Town Calendar.
News & Events
The ACF comes alive in a new video from the Vermont Master Naturalists program. “Tracking Wildlife in Winter at Andrews Community Forest” will put you on the trail of the Forest’s bears, bobcats, porcupines and other species.
A special page for the Andrews Community Forest - The popular app iNaturalist has a special page for the Andrews Community Forest in its listings for “Projects.” Be sure to record your sightings!
Two power lines and their maintenance roads cut owned by VELCO and Green Mountain Power cut across the ACF on right-of-ways owned by the utilities. While visiting the forest, you might encounter crews maintaining the lines and access roads. Please be sure to avoid their equipment. Tip: Keep a special look-out for birds when passing under the lines. Many species frequent the low, brushy growth that the utilities maintain there.
What You Can See in the ACF
List of Typical Species
The Andrews Community Forest’s terrain, its uncommon natural communities, and largely unfragmented, undisturbed interior expanse make it a wildlife hotspot.
Birds abound from its high hemlock canopies to the bushes and brambles in open areas along trails and old logging roads. Spring and fall bring an extra bonanza of migrant stopovers. You might see a bear, bobcat, fisher, moose or coyote – or, more likely, their tracks, scat, tree scratches and scrapings, and other signs. White-tailed deer are active throughout the ACF. Frogs and salamanders live in the Forest’s streams, wetlands and vernal pools, filling the latter with masses of tadpoles each spring.
For More Information
The ACF’s biodiversity and unfragmented acreage has attracted the attention of many naturalists, biologists, botanists, ornithologists, ecology students and other professionals. Their assessments provide us with the information we need to care for the forest and its wild inhabitants. Amateur naturalists play an important role as well, filling in the fine detail of what lives in the Forest. Apps like iNaturalist and eBird will help you identify and learn more about the plants and animals you see. The sightings you can log on them will help us in managing the Forest for wildlife and people alike.
Ecological Studies, Reports and Observations
Vermont Land Trust (2017)
Audubon Vermont (2017)
UVM Field Naturalist Program (2019)
Arrowwood Environmental (2021) (2022)
ACF page on iNaturalist
From Farm to Forest, an overview of the Forest and its human history, by Angus Bisgard Cummings
Maps
Biodiversity Rankings – ACF’s standing and contributions to its 70,000-acre forest block (Vermont Conservation Design)
Natural Communities (Arrowwood Environmental) – Unique assemblages of plants essential to ACF biodiversity and wildlife viability
VLT Ecological Protective Zones
Heat Map – Areas of the ACF color-coded to show their sensitivity to habitat disturbances (UVM Field Naturalist Program)
ACF Management Committee
The ACF is owned by the Town of Richmond, with the Richmond Selectboard ultimately responsible for the Forest’s management and stewardship. The Selectboard has delegated much of this responsibility to the nine-member Andrews Community Forest Committee. It meets monthly at the Town Center, usually on the fourth Monday. For dates, start times and Zoom links of upcoming meetings, please see the list below, Front Porch Forum announcements or the Town Calendar.
As with all Town boards and committees, the ACFC encourages interested members of the public to take part in its meetings and activities, and to apply for open seats on the Committee as they come up. Or use the Contact link below to share an idea or ask a question.
ACFC bylaws
Committee documents (to come)
Contact the Committee
Andrews Community Forest Committee Members
9 members – 3-year term
| Members | Term Start | Term End | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wright Preston | 2024 | 2027 | Appointment |
| Melissa Wolaver - Co-Chair | 2022 | 2025 | Appointment |
| Bradford Elliott – Conservation Commission Recommendation | 2023 | 2026 | Appointment |
| Sam Pratt – Conservation Commission Representative | 2024 | 2027 | Appointment |
| Chase Rosenberg – Trails Committee Representative | 2022 | 2025 | Appointment |
| Ian Stokes - Co-Chair, richmondtownforest at gmail.com | 2023 | 2026 | Appointment |
| Cecilia Danks | 2022 | 2025 | Appointment |
| Jim Cochran - Trails Committee Recommendation | 2024 | 2027 | Appointment |
| Julian Portilla | 2023 | 2026 | Appointment |
If you’d like to join the ACF Committee, send a letter of interest along with this form completed to Duncan Wardwell, Assistant to the Town Manager, at dwardwell@richmondvt.gov
Upcoming Meetings
Access upcoming meeting documents by clicking on the meeting.
May19 6
PM – 8:30 PM June23 6
PM – 8 PM
ACF Management Plan
The ACF Committee manages the Forest according to a comprehensive plan based on extensive public input and designed to protect and even enhance the Forest’s many natural, recreational and educational resources.
The Plan is periodically updated to incorporate new knowledge about the Forest, its ecological functions, community needs and stewardship priorities. Maps and appendices provide important background information for the goals and actions found throughout the plan. The Plan’s provisions are based on requirements and guidelines spelled out in the Conservation Easement, Richmond Town Plan and Richmond Zoning Regulations.
ACF Management Plan
- Updated ACFC Bylaws which replace the Bylaws in the ACF Management Plan
Maps and appendices
Background documents
Richmond Town Plan (ACF-Relevant Sections)
Richmond Zoning Regulations (ACF-Relevant Sections
Conservation Easement
Updating the Management Plan
The ACF Management Plan describes itself as a “living and evolving document,” with provisions calling for it to be updated at least every ten years. In 2021 the ACFC approved consultants’ recommendations for a trail map with significant differences from a concept map included in the Management Plan. Per that Plan, those differences required a full revision of the Plan, a process now underway based on a draft revision produced in 2022.
The ACFC is using this opportunity to update the entire document with information about the Forest and best management practices not available for earlier drafts, as well as the range of public input generated by the consultants’ proposals and a first draft of the revised Plan. For example, the new Plan will acknowledge our Town’s responsibilities to the Forest’s original stewards, the Western Abenaki people. The entire document is being reformatted to make it easier to find needed information.
• Consultants’ report and proposal (2021) – Describes ecological features and proposed trail routes
Initially proposed trail map (2021)
Proposed alternative (2022)
Follow-up report – Consultants’ responses to questions reflecting concerns about proximity of proposed trails to sensitive habitats, and the need for and timing of finer-scale assessments
• Proposed update to Current Management Plan (2022)
• Community Inputs
Forestry Management Plan
The ACF’s Forestry Management Plan is built on the principles of “ecological forestry,” which uses practices such as the careful harvesting of trees to emulate the natural disturbances that foster greater biodiversity and forest resilience. It also covers the ACF’s place and contributions to its 70,000-acre forest block – one of the state’s highest-priority blocks – as well as wildlife habitat, water management, recreation, invasive species control and other topics. It describes the Forest’s division into three zones, each with its own management approach.
Since the Forestry Management Plan was adopted, several acres have been harvested. Some of the wood was sold, with proceeds going to the Forest’s management fund. Other wood was milled and stored on site, for use in picnic tables, information kiosks and other infrastructure. Firewood was donated to a local non-profit that makes it available for little or no cost to disadvantaged families and individuals.
Forestry Management Plan
Forestry Maps
ACF Soil Map (2019)
Forest Stands (2019)
Forest Stands -Topo (2019)
Management Intensity Zones (2019)
Forestry Activities Map (2019)
ACF Invasives Map 090119
Example Forester Agreement 072419)