An important part of our work at Vermont River Conservancy is protecting ecosystems so that when a drop of water falls in the Green Mountains, it flows through mossy headwater forests, beaver-filled wetlands, down cool streams, and into communities with broad floodplains while making its way to a clean Lake Champlain, Lake Memphremagog, Connecticut River, or Hudson River. Wetlands are a piece of the puzzle when protecting rivers and their watersheds. This is a sampling of the wetlands we have protected throughout the state. Check out our interactive site map to find more!
These two river corridor easements are adjacent to each other along the New Haven River. Their combined 13 acres and habitat types, ranging from floodplain forest to beaver wetlands to upland meadows, provide important wildlife habitat and room for the river to move.
Along the Lewis Creek, this wetland parcel is home to a restored clayplain forest and riverside shrubs that help capture and slow water when the river gets high. In addition to providing benefits to the people who get their water from Lake Champlain downstream, it provides important habitat for beavers, fish, and songbirds.
We just protected this wetland in Manchester. This former farm was well-loved by its owners and deemed the most beautiful place on Earth by them. This land has flooded repeatedly, and now it is a protected river corridor that will be an effective wetland and protect downstream communities.
This headwaters preserve is set to be our largest conservation easement ever. As a “forever wild” preserve owned by Northeast Wilderness Trust, this area, with a large variation in elevation, provides diverse habitat to many species, big and small. With such specific and rare ecosystems, having this large parcel protected will have benefits at multiple levels- from filtering water as it flows downstream to providing breeding habitat for rare species.
We are working with Green Mountain Conservancy and Vermont Housing and Conservation Board to protect this preserve in Marlboro. Full of beaver wetlands and small headwaters streams, this site includes rare natural communities and improves water quality downstream in the Green River Watershed.
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