Why It Matters: The proposed forest health improvement treatments on the Green Mountain National Forest, particularly prescribed fire, support fire-adapted plant communities and promote species (like oaks) that are critical for wildlife. Fire suppression leads to changes in forest composition and structure and builds fuels, increasing wildfire risk to nearby communities. Environmental interests criticized the project, and it is important for the sporting-conservation community to support the work of trained foresters, biologists, and other natural resource professionals to implement the goals, which were created with public input during the forest plan revision, to improve wildlife habitat and forest resiliency through active forest management.
Highlights:
On February 11, the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF) submitted a letter in support of the Northern Escarpment Ecological Restoration and Fire Resilience (NEERFR) Project on the Green Mountain National Forest in Vermont.
- The NEERFR Project will use prescribed fire and other treatments to reduce fuel loads, promote oaks and other fire-adapted species, improve forest health, and enhance habitat diversity for wildlife.
- Despite claims from some members of the public, the proposed prescribed fire treatments are science-based and scaled appropriately to move the project area towards the desired future conditions.
In January 2026, the U.S. Forest Service released the NEERFR Project Proposal, including details about the proposed actions and their ecological benefits, and solicited public feedback by opening a comment period and holding a public meeting, contrary to accusations that they are not being transparent. Moreover, the proposed treatments support the three management areas’ desired future conditions described in the 2006 Green Mountain National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan (Forest Plan), which was developed with robust public input.
The proposed controlled burns are consistent with the Fire Management Guidelines for each management area, as detailed in the Forest Plan. Prescribed fire will also advance the Vermont Forest Action Plan’s desired future condition to conserve biological diversity across all landscapes. Additionally, the prescribed fire treatments will benefit early azalea, the host species for the azalea mining bee, a High Priority Species of Greatest Conservation Need in the draft 2025 Vermont Wildlife Action Plan.
The NEERFR Project will also target three non-native invasive pests negatively impacting Eastern hemlocks. Hemlocks are important for regulating water temperatures for cold-water habitats, and hemlocks provide important nesting habitat for birds, food for porcupines, and cover for deer in winter. Some members of the public questioned these treatments, even though they are consistent with the Pests, Diseases, and Non-Native Invasive Species Guidelines for the management areas and further the Vermont Forest Action Plan’s desired future condition to maintain forest ecosystem health and ecological productivity by slowing the spread of non-native invasive species that have an impact on forest ecosystems.
CSF is excited to see the NEERFR Project be implemented over the next 15 years to improve habitat for a wide range of species, including wild turkey, deer, and bear, that are important to Vermont’s sportsmen and women.
