Northwest Connecticut Land Conservancy

06/24/2026

Conservation is about more than protecting land. It’s also about caring for people and the natural systems that sustain our communities.

This month, NCLC hosted Wilderness First Aid training for staff and conservation partners, helping strengthen our collective ability to safely steward conserved lands and outdoor programs. This is just one of the stories featured in our June e-newsletter.

Also inside:
🌿 Celebrating the protection of Tanner Farm in Warren
🚜 A preservation grant for Smyrski Farm's historic barns in New Milford
🥾 Meet our new Summer Trail Stewards
🦫 How partners are helping people and beavers to coexist in Kent

See what's happening across the region and read NCLC's June e-newsletter at the link below.

https://conta.cc/43CLfJP

06/23/2026

Exciting news! Governor Lamont has announced $9.4 million in grant funding to permanently protect 1,243 acres of open space across 14 conservation projects through the Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection (DEEP) Open Space and Watershed Land Acquisition (OSWA) program. Congratulations to our fellow land trusts for securing this vital funding! It is an honor to work beside you to permanently protect the lands we love and all depend on.

https://portal.ct.gov/governor/news/press-releases/2026/06-2026/governor-lamont-announces-state-grants-to-preserve-1243-acres-of-land

Huge news for land conservation in Connecticut!

Governor Lamont just announced $9.4 million in grant funding to permanently protect 1,243 acres of open space across 14 conservation projects through the Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection (DEEP) Open Space and Watershed Land Acquisition (OSWA) program, alongside $2.4 million to revitalize 15 urban green and community garden spaces!

Congratulations to Aspetuck Land Trust, Cheshire Land Trust, Flanders Nature Center & Land Trust, The Middlesex Land Trust, North Branford Land Conservation Trust Inc. Northwest Connecticut Land Conservancy, Roxbury Land Trust, The Salisbury Association, Sharon Land Trust, Inc., Southbury Land Trust, Steep Rock Association, Trust for Public Land, and Wyndham Land Trust on securing OSWA funding for an impressive slate of projects.

From core forest tracks like the 312-acre Ilewicz property in Killingly to fully accessible riverfront parks and community gardens in New Haven and Waterbury, this grant round is a monumental victory for climate resilience, biodiversity, and equal access to the outdoors.

Thank you to everyone who has voiced their support for the Community Investment Act, which helps fund these conservation projects. Your advocacy helped make this possible!

If your land trust is ready to secure your community's next great natural asset, don't wait: the 29th grant round is officially open right now!

Read more: https://portal.ct.gov/governor/news/press-releases/2026/06-2026/governor-lamont-announces-state-grants-to-preserve-1243-acres-of-land?language=en_US



📸 via Connecticut Network (CT-N) Watch the news briefing: http://ct-n.com/ctnplayer.asp?odID=26618

PS: High-five to Rebecca, CLCC's Sandy Breslin Conservation Fellow, for representing CLCC at the News Briefing!

06/23/2026

Join us this Thursday for Meet Your Greens at Brewery Legitimus—a fun, free community meetup for anyone who cares about protecting Connecticut’s lands, farms, and waters!

📅 Thursday, June 25
⏰ 5–7 p.m.
📍 Brewery Legitimus, 283 Main St., New Hartford
🔗https://ctland.org/event/june-25-meet-your-greens-at-brewery-legitimus/

Connect with local conservation organizations, enjoy light refreshments, and meet fellow nature‑minded neighbors who work or volunteer in the environmental and land-management fields. Attendees purchase their own drinks.

Co‑hosted by: Northwest Connecticut Land Conservancy, Farmington River Watershed Association, Harwinton Land Trust, Heritage Land Preservation Trust, New Hartford Land Trust, and North Woods Land Conservancy.

06/17/2026

**UPDATE - This event has been postponed. We will post again when a new date has been set.**

Protecting the places you love—right here in northern Fairfield and Litchfield counties. Join NCLC for a free, special presentation on why protecting local land is essential for wildlife, community well‑being, and our shared future. Whether you love hiking, want to connect more with nature, or care about protecting the natural beauty of our region, this talk will inspire and inform. We look forward to seeing you there!

Date: Thursday, June 18
Time: 5 to 6 p.m.
Location: New Fairfield Library, 2 Brush Hill Road, New Fairfield, CT
Registration required

https://ctland.org/event/conservation-in-action-why-local-land-protection-matters/

06/16/2026

Last Friday, The Warren Land Trust, Connecticut Land Conservation Council, and Northwest Connecticut Land Conservancy (NCLC) gathered at Tanner Farm to celebrate the permanent protection of this iconic Warren landscape.

Owned and farmed by the Tanner family for nearly 250 years, the 198-acre property includes productive farmland, forests, wildlife habitat, and Sucker Brook—the largest tributary to Lake Waramaug. The land is now owned by Warren Land Trust, with NCLC holding a 128-acre agricultural conservation easement that permanently protects the farm's agricultural soils and ensures the land remains available for farming into the future.

Thank you to everyone who joined us to celebrate this conservation success and the many partnerships that made it possible.

Learn more about the project: https://ctland.org/tanner-farm-permanently-protected-in-warren/

06/14/2026

Today at 3 p.m. in New Hartford.

Join us on Sunday, June 14th at 3:00PM on the second floor of the New Hartford Hurley Building for a talk on Bald Eagles, presented by Ginny Apple, FRWA board member and Master Wildlife Conservationist with CT DEEP.

Bald Eagles were once so endangered that many considered whether to replace them as America’s national symbol. Their ongoing story of recovery as a species, and the return of Connecticut’s healthy eagle population, is a comeback story worth hearing.

This talk will take place in front of the Upper Farmington River Quilt exhibit, and is free & open to all. Be sure to check it out!

06/11/2026

In less time than it will take you to sing 30 Happy Birthdays 🎶 you can make your voice heard 📢 about trails and other outdoor rec. Now through June 19th! 👇🙏😉

https://bit.ly/WarrenKentTrailsSurvey




The Warren Land Trust Kent Land Trust The Kent Dispatch Town of Kent,CT Town of Warren

06/11/2026

06/11/2026

"This hike was about more than conservation skills—it was about building community," said Melissa Cherniske.