As part of the Act 59 implementation process, the Vermont Conservation Strategy Initiative (VCSI) team is hosting a virtual public meeting at 4:00 pm on June 27, 2024 to review the draft inventory of conserved lands in Vermont. Register today!

The “Community Resilience and Biodiversity Protection Act” (CRBPA, or Act 59), was passed by the legislature last July, and commits Vermont to the goal of conserving 30 percent of its land by 2030 and 50 percent by 2050. The bill requires the Vermont Housing and Conservation Board (VHCB), in consultation with the Agency of Natural Resources, to develop an inventory of conserved lands that takes stock of existing conservation data and practices, public and professional perspectives, and opportunities and avenues for future conservation.

As part of this process, VCSI has collected stakeholder input through surveys, focus groups, interviews, and roundtables, including two sessions with conservation commissions – an in-person meeting at Waitsfield Town Hall on March 20th and a virtual focus group hosted by the AVCC on March 27th. The upcoming June 27th meeting represents yet another opportunity for commission members to share their thoughts and perspectives on this historic legislation.

The inventory, which represents a culmination of all the VCSI work to date, is required to be submitted for review to the House Committees on Environment and Energy and on Agriculture, Food Resiliency, and Forestry and the Senate Committee
on Natural Resources and Energy by July 1st, 2024. A statewide conservation plan that details the strategies for biodiversity protection and land management that will enable the state to reach its 30 x 30 and 50 x 50 conservation goals is due to the legislature by December 31st, 2025.

You can find out more about the Act 59 implementation process by visiting the VCSI website at https://vhcb.org/our-programs/vcsi.