Keeping Our Landscape Healthy and Resilient

Vermont’s forests, rivers, and fields aren’t just beautiful—they form a living, interconnected system that supports us and all the plants and animals we share this land with. It’s important that we maintain the ecological functioning of our landscape so that it continues to support critical natural processes.

That’s the premise behind the Vermont Conservation Design—a science-based approach to identifying and conserving Vermont’s most important natural areas, to keep our ecosystems functioning for the next 100 years and beyond.

An ecologically functional landscape includes:

• Large, unbroken forests where wildlife like bobcats, bears, and songbirds can thrive.
• Connected landscapes that allow animals, plants, and fungi to move and adapt as the climate changes.
• Healthy rivers, wetlands, and floodplains that keep our water clean and reduce flooding.
• A variety of geological features and landforms that support different ecosystems. Special habitats like vernal pools and grasslands that shelter rare and threatened species.

The sections below will break down these pieces of Vermont’s conservation puzzle—what they are, why they matter, and how they apply here in Calais. Next up: Why interior forest habitats are so important and how we can keep them intact.