Old Growth Forest Bill
Yes, Massachusetts does have old growth forests.
Old growth forests are parcels of land that have been left largely undisturbed by European settlers and their descendants. In Massachusetts they contain trees that are hundreds of years old, some of which are 100 to 150 feet high.
Old growth forests are a link to the grandeur of the natural world. They are among the most biologically diverse landscape. And they are very rare. (Read more about the importance of Old Growth Forests).
Even though these exemplary gems of nature are found on state lands, the old growth stands lack statutory protection necessary to withstand inconsistent state agency management policies. For example, the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation permitted the destruction of 12 acres of mature woodlands for a snowboard park beside the rare and biologically rich old-growth forest at Wachusett Mountain State Reservation - contrary to the agency's resource management plan for the forest.
The Old Growth Forest Bill (H236) would require the Secretary of Energy and the Environment to inventory forests on state lands, identify old growth forest reserves thereon, and develop plans for the management and protection of the reserves.