Connecticut's Last Great Places

Pawcatuck Borderlands

Community-Based Conservation Project 

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The Nature Conservancy's Connecticut and Rhode Island Chapters of have begun a bold new conservation initiative: The Pawcatuck Borderlands.  This ambitious joint project is dedicated to protecting thousands of acres of high-quality forest, ensuring the health of several watersheds, and retaining the area's rural character.

One of the last remaining central-hardwood forests in all of New England, the 200-square mile Borderlands are bounded by such large highways as Interstate 95, I-395, Connecticut routes 2 and 14A, and Rhode Island routes 3 and 102.  The area includes the towns of Voluntown, North Stonington, Sterling, Griswold, Preston and Plainfield, Conn., as well as Hopkinton, Exeter, West Greenwich, and Coventry, R.I.

The diversity of the landscape within this corridor is remarkable.  Nearly 80 percent of the landscape is covered in forest, rich with oak, hickory, hemlock, and pine.  The area supports populations of birds that require large tracts of forest, like pileated woodpecker and Louisiana waterthrush.  Uncommonly large pitch-pine woodlands thrive on dry, sandy soils.  Wetlands dot the landscape providing unique habitats for Atlantic white cedar and giant rhododendron.  The Wood and Shunock rivers benefit from the vast expanse of forest cover: native brook trout and rare dragonflies ply their waters, and there is abundant breeding habitat for alewive and herring.

Nearly 40 percent of the Borderlands is already protected by the Pachaug State Forest and the Arcadia Management Area.  The landscape is the southern end of a corridor of relatively undeveloped, rural lands that connect with "The Quiet Corner" of northeast Connecticut and the "Foster/Gloucester" area of northwest Rhode Island.

But the rural character that makes the area attractive to visit and live in is under pressure. The area is only a 45-minute drive from Providence and Hartford, and is home to several world-class tourist attractions.  There is increasing demand for housing and other development, such as roads and shopping centers.  Traffic is escalating on local roads and highways, preventing wildlife from migrating between habitats.  Finite water resources are used more and more, impacting both the quality and quantity of water in local watersheds.  Towns in the area are struggling with how to address this level of growth- schools, roads, and services are strained to their capacity.

The Nature Conservancy is protecting these forests and watersheds through direct land acquisition, through cooperative acquisition with our state and local partners, and through innovative land management projects.  The Conservancy is also enhancing the viability and economics of working lands through cooperative arrangements that protect the landscape while allowing it to support the families who live and work on the land.

The Connecticut Chapter and the Rhode Island Chapter of the Conservancy are working in partnership with state agencies, local land trusts, municipalities, and individuals to protect this region's forests and promote ecological management that will help them endure as healthy and resilient environments.  MORE

Learn more:

Atlantic White Cedars and Giant Rhododendron Characterize Pawcatuck Borderlands

Pitch Pine Woodlands: A Threatened Natural Community

Update: Partnership Protects 123 More Acres:  Working in partnership, The Nature Conservancy and the North Stonington Citizens Land Alliance created a new 123-acre nature preserve on Cossaduck Hill Road.  READ PRESS RELEASE

Partnership Protects 45 Acres in Plainfield: Working together, the Wyndham Land Trust and The Nature Conservancy have created a new 45-acre nature preserve in Plainfield.  READ PRESS RELEASE

85-Acre Nature Preserve Created in North Stonington: The Nature Conservancy has protects a key portion of one of the east coast’s rarest natural communities.  READ PRESS RELEASE

Over 600 Acres Preserved in North Stonington; 54-Acre Gladys Foster Preserve Open to the Public.  The Conservancy has partnered with the heirs of Brower and Antoinette Hewitt to protect more than 600 acres of forest and stream corridor on Oldhaven Farm.  READ PRESS RELEASE

Contact Pawcatuck Borderlands Program Director Kevin Essington at 860/535-1355 or kessington@tnc.org

Directions:

• From I-95, take exit 92 to Route 2 (follow signs to Foxwoods Resort Casino).  Follow Route 2 west through rotary and past North Stonington High School.  The office is in the Holly Green office center on the left, across from Rosie's Diner. 
• From I-395 northbound take Route 2A to Route 2 (follow signs to Foxwoods Resort Casino).  Follow Route 2 east past Foxwoods to North Stonington.
  The office is in the Holly Green office center on the right, across from Rosie's Diner. 
• From I-395 southbound take exit 85 to Route 164 south (follow signs to Foxwoods).  Take Rout 164 to Route 2 east, past Foxwoods to North Stonington.  The office is in the Holly Green office center on the right, across from Rosie's Diner.
• In Holly Green, the office is in the middle of the building, facing the Chelsea-Groton Bank, next to Curves for Women.

Visit a preserve in the Pawcatuck Borderlands!
Canonchet Brook Preserve
Ell Pond/Long Pond

Looking for outdoor activities in the area?  Visit the Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center in Mystic.