From The Nature Conservancy in Massachusetts:
Blandford — To create the new Blandford Cross-Pike Nature Connector, The Nature Conservancy in Massachusetts recently purchased 578 acres of land in Blandford. The large-scale forested land includes several streams, trails, and habitat for animals critical for connecting resilient, diverse land along the Massachusetts Turnpike (MassPike) between the Springfield area and the Berkshires. It connects nearly 40,000 acres of permanently protected land north and south of the MassPike in the Appalachian region of the state.
“This is a big win for nature,” said Richard Cavanaugh, the land protection manager for The Nature Conservancy in Massachusetts, which will eventually sell the land to the state’s Department of Conservation and Recreation and Department of Fish and Game. “The MassPike is a significant barrier to wildlife’s ability to move safely across the landscape, impacting their populations and creating a safety hazard for people. These 578 acres are an important connecting piece contributing to The Nature Conservancy’s vision for the Appalachians as a continental-scale network of connected, resilient lands and waters—a 2,000-mile biodiversity superhighway enabling plants and animals to adapt to a changing climate. By connecting these protected lands, we will be working to enhance critical passageways for wildlife across the landscape and even beneath the MassPike through culverts. It also presents a significant step forward in helping to reach the Commonwealth’s biodiversity goals.”
This project now guarantees that acres of trees can sequester carbon, waterways in the Westfield River Watershed will be protected as part of the City of Springfield’s water supply, and more plants and animals can thrive.
Consisting of uplands, grasslands, and young and old forests, the land is located on the west side of Chester Road in Blandford and runs on the south side of the MassPike near the Chester, Becket, and Otis town lines. Potential improvements to the culverts that run underneath the MassPike by the state’s Department of Transportation would promote safe passage for wildlife below the highway and therefore protect vehicular travelers from animal collisions. Stormwater management would also be improved with any future culvert upgrades.
About 70 percent, or 413 acres, of the Connector are part of the state’s BioMap Critical Natural Landscape, which identifies important wildlife and habitats. It also includes Sanderson Brook, Cushman Brook, Finley Brook, and Peebles Brook—all coldwater fisheries—and three vernal pools. Peebles Brook is part of the City of Springfield’s primary public water supply. About 300 acres within the Connector provide a critical protected area for the vulnerable New England cottontail rabbit which is threatened with habitat loss and other factors.
The Connector ties into lands to the east that are owned by the state’s Department of Conservation and Recreation, land to the west owned by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Trustees of Reservations, as well as parcels dedicated to the City of Springfield’s Water District, creating nearly 40,000 acres of now contiguous, permanently protected land.
In Blandford, the Connector will provide western access and a 218-acre addition to the Chester-Blandford State Forest along with new trail linkages for recreation. The Department of Fish & Game will hold the other 360-acres as a Wildlife Management Area available for recreational use, including walking, hiking, hunting, fishing, and wildlife viewing.
“The Blandford Cross Pike Nature Project offers the rare opportunity to protect a diversity of habitats including fields, forest, water access, and ridgetop vistas,” said Cavanaugh. “Permanently protecting this land is particularly significant in Hampden County where public access opportunities are increasingly more limited as properties are purchased for residential development, private estates, and second homes.”
