Larry Garland is still pursuing his life lifelong interest in conservation, now as a member of the Northfield Conservation Commission. A graduate of Cornell, Mr. Garland lives in Northfield Falls, and is a retiree of Vermont Fish and Wildlife. His interest began in his youth and runs in the family; his father was a soil conservationist.

“At the end of the nineties, a group of local people, Bill Osgood, was one, tried to form such a conservation commission,” Mr. Garland said. “But it was not the right time.

“By 2006, times had changed, we spent a year organizing and in 2007, voters at Town Meeting authorized our work. Being voted in by the people, means that State standards outline our responsibilities. The Select board appoints members.”

Mr. Garland recently addressed citizens in a talk offered at the Senior Center. He said, currently the Commission, which meets once a month with assignments in between, is developing management plans for the municipal water lands. The land is in Dustin’s Pasture in the Town of Berlin, the well field on Route 12A, and on Paine Mt. at the so-called Cheney Farm.

The water at Dustin’s is for fire protection. Cheney’s constitutes the town’s secondary drinking water supply. They are municipal lands, owned by the Water Department and managed by the Trustees. The properties were bought to secure the water, not for recreation, not for the land.

Mr. Garland said that the infrastructure of the springs on Cheney Farm is “gone. We need to invest money and maintain the property or the wells will be lost.”

Today, anyone hiking the Paine Mountain trails can see that logging, recreational use and abuse, and neglect have resulted in trails that are a mess. Many areas are sluices for spring runoff.

“Protecting resources and public accommodation are always bumping into each other,” Mr. Garland said. “A conservationist who thinks a strict natural system is best would oppose stocking brooks with fish which aren’t native. To them, stocking is a bad decision. But if you’re talking public recreation, stocking is a great decision.”

The Conservation Commission doesn’t have staff or more than a few hundred dollar budget or any direct authority. Regulatory authority rests with the Trustees and the Select board. Several professional conservationists and several townspeople interested use and protection of Northfield’s resources volunteer on the commission.

Through a State grant, the Commission hired a specialist to study the Dog River from Montpelier to its headwater in Roxbury. As a result of the study, they are seeking grants to address storm water runoff affecting The Dog and to create wider buffers to protect the river from contaminants, to filter sediment, and to protect habitat.

Anyone interested in working with the Conservation Commission may contact a Select board member to express interest.