Chittenden County Forester Year-end Report

Here is a recap of 2023 from our County Forester, Ethan Tapper.

Hi all,

It has been such a pleasure to be your County Forester in 2023! As I do each year, I'm reaching out this morning to share my 2023 edition of "A Year in Review" -- a collection of the projects I've had the privilege to been involved in over the last year -- and links to where you can learn more.

2023: A Year in Review

2023 was another jam-packed year for forests and forestry in Chittenden County! Here are some highlights and opportunities to learn more:

• I wrote 12 articles for 10 community newspapers in Chittenden County (see archive, here: https://www.miltonindependent.com/search/?f=html&q=tapper&s=start_time&sd=desc&l=25&t=article%2Ccollection%2Cvideo%2Cyoutube&nsa=edition), and a quarterly column in Northern Woodlands Magazine (see archive, here: https://northernwoodlands.org/search/results/eyJyZXN1bHRfcGFnZSI6InNlYXJjaFwvcmVzdWx0cyIsImtleXdvcmRzIjoiXCJmb3Jlc3QgaW5zaWdodHNcIiJ9).

• My YouTube channel continues to grow, with more than 135 videos, 1,000 subscribers and 20,000 views per month! Explore and subscribe to my YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCG5pCDPHUyOiA2vW1l7L6oA?sub_confirmation=1

• I led 49 public educational programs, attended by 1,700 people – to stay apprised of upcoming events and educational opportunities in 2024, subscribe to my email list here: https://vermont.us7.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=58398f7a782118e355bf99377&id=58d2751d34

• I completed a forest management project at the Catamount Community Forest in Williston, including a massive public outreach effort -- walks, videos, articles, press releases, television appearances and more. Besides demonstrating responsible forestry, this project is part of an ongoing project called Adaptive Silviculture for Climate Change, that will inform how we care for and manage forests in a changing climate. You can learn more about this project by checking out this story map: https://arcg.is/18CXGa

• I concluded a two-winter forest management project at the Hinesburg Town Forest’s Hayden Hill Road East access. This project was also part of a larger outreach effort, with 19 public events, videos, articles, and educational signage. This project will also be part of the ASCC program, part of UVM research on planting climate-adapted tree species.

• I also continued working with the Town of Westford to conduct some forest management on the Westford Town Lands – including some “micro-scale” commercial forest management at the Maple Shade Town Forest (which included producing timbers for the restoration of the Vermont Youth Conservation Corps’ east monitor barn), and non-commercial Forest Stand Improvement (FSI) with Essex High School’s forestry tech program. The work at the Maple Shade Town Forest will be continuing this winter!

• I was able to work with the Town of Huntington on Forest Management Plans for each of their two town forests: the 245-acre Huntington Community Forest and the 100-acre Huntington Town Forest. In an effort to make it more accessible, for the first time I have drafted a Forest Management Plan – for the Huntington Town Forest – as a story map. Check it out here: https://arcg.is/1P8G0z0

• I was able to secure funding from the Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Habitat Stamp program, and, in partnership with Vermont Coverts and VDFW, was able to implement some non-commercial wildlife habitat management at four different community forests. This included: mast tree release and invasive plant control at the Andrews Community Forest, early-successional habitat creation at the Preston Pond Conservation Area, golden-winged warbler habitat management and early-successional habitat creation at the LaPlatte Headwaters Town Forest, Forest Stand Improvement at the Westford Town Lands, and the installation of interpretive signage at the sites of all of these projects.

• I became a full-on bird nerd, and was able to become one of Vermont’s three Audubon-endorsed foresters.

• I was honored to be able to travel to Pennsylvania and New Jersey to deliver keynote addresses at conferences for the Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry and the New Jersey Forestry Association. You can watch a recording of my New Jersey speech here: https://youtu.be/dze8WAd8rvo?si=FA63hzSzMGzzTIyd

• As always, you can check out everything I’m working on at one place on my LinkTree, at https://linktr.ee/ChittendenCountyForester

I hope you all have a Happy Holidays, and I’m looking forward to connecting with you in 2024!

Best,

Ethan Tapper

Chittenden County Forester

ethan.tapper@vermont.gov