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Frequented by photographers and nature lovers from around the world, the 18,000-acre Francis Beidler bird and wildlife sanctuary offers a beauty unsurpassed in the South Carolina low-country. It is the world’s largest virgin cypress-tupelo swamp forest, a pristine ecosystem of thousand-year-old trees. The sanctuary also boasts a plethora of wildlife. Because the property features stands of valuable timber, logging has been an attractive management option in the past. The largest remaining old-growth bottomland hardwood forest and the largest remaining virgin cypress-tupelo swamp were formerly part of the Santee Cypress Lumber Company holdings. In recent years, the Audubon Society placed a permanent conservation easement on 5,548 acres of the property, prohibiting future development and commercial harvesting. This easement initiated a forest carbon project to generate funds for the long-term maintenance of the area and protection of additional buffering lands.

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Noles Farms Forest Conservation Projects comprise two farms (Noles Farm North and Noles Farm South) that collectively encompass 1,026 acres of forested land in Washington and Hyde County North Carolina. The property has been placed under a conservation easement with the USDA to ensure that the land will not be disturbed by human development. Without this protection, the forest would have been harvested, burned on site, and converted to agricultural land for wheat or corn crop production, similar to neighboring properties.

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Pungo River Forest Conservation Project comprises 704 acres of forested land in the Atlantic Coastal Plains of North Carolina. Due to the rich and diverse ecosystem, the property owner was keen to retain the natural state of the forest. Over 40 years ago, the project was ditched, drained, and cleared. It was subsequently allowed to naturally regenerate as forest and has been safely placed under a conservation easement with the USDA to ensure the perpetuity of its natural state. If this land was not placed under an easement, the forest would alternatively have been harvested, burned on site, and then converted to agricultural land for corn or wheat crop production, as has been done on neighboring properties.

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Shaan Seet is an improved forest management project on Prince of Wales Island in the Alaskan Panhandle, owned and managed by Shaan Seet, Inc. It includes higher elevation regions, recently deglaciated lands, wetlands, beach fringes and 7,000 acres of old-growth forest. The project will protect the land from development over the next 40 years and ensure continued environmental benefits through the preservation of old-growth sections of forestland. In addition to preservation, the project helps protect five different species of fish including sockeye salmon, coho salmon, chum salmon, pink salmon and steelhead trout.

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The Klawock Heenya Project protects 8,600 acres of forest on Prince of Wales Island in Alaska—1,000 acres of which is old-growth forest, home to centuries-old trees and an abundance of biodiversity. The forests of Klawock Heenya have been utilized for centuries for subsistence uses such as firewood, housing materials, and canoe logs. From 1980 to 2015, nearly all the commercially operable timber on Klawock Heenya lands was harvested, narrowly preserving the areas of old growth that remain. Since then, natural regeneration has resulted in thriving second growth forests, with trees reaching up to twelve feet in diameter. The registration and management of this forest carbon project helps ensure the long-term sustainable governance, protecting and preserving the health and age of the forest.

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The Kootznoowoo Project protects 20,159 acres of forest across 4 project areas on the Dolomi and Dora Bay tracts of Prince of Wales Island in Alaska. Approximately 8,000 acres of the project property is old-growth forest. The project is owned by the native Haida and Tlingit people and managed in common with the U.S. Forest Service. The project location includes several different ecosystems, from beach to high elevation. The land hosts many different types of berries—prized in the region—and animal habitats such as Sitka black-tailed deer, black bear, mountain goat, moose, beaver, weasel, land otter, and red fox. The area also includes around 12 fish bearing streams that boast sockeye salmon, Coho salmon, chum salmon, pink salmon and steelhead trout.

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Doe Mountain Improved Forest Management Project is located on over 8,500 acres of forestland in the Blue Ridge Mountains of eastern Tennessee. By committing to maintain forest CO2 stocks above the regional common practice, the project will provide significant climate benefits through carbon sequestration. The carbon revenues from the project allow the Doe Mountain Recreation Authority to continue to operate with a paid staff and manage the use of the lands for public enjoyment.

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Middlebury Improved Forest Management Project is located on over 3,000 acres of mixed hardwood and conifer forest in the Green Mountains in central Vermont. By committing to maintain forest CO2 stocks above the regional common practice, the project will provide significant climate benefits through carbon sequestration. The project has allowed a permanent conservation easement to be placed on these lands, and this protection runs counter to how the project was managed in the early 1920s when it was logged to provide the lumber for Middlebury College campus buildings.

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Three cities in Massachusetts—Holyoke, Westfield, and West Springfield—have launched a joint Improved Forest Management project on ~17,000 acres of public forestland in central Massachusetts. Located in the Lower Connecticut River Valley, the properties are currently managed for watershed services, timber production, and recreation. The cities are challenged financially and are under pressure to generate increased revenue from their forests. The carbon project enables them to do so without resorting to more aggressive timber harvesting. The cities will achieve Forest Stewardship Council certification of their forests for the first time, helping further ensure long-term environmental and economic sustainability.

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Covering over 3,600 acres in northern New Jersey, Hudson Farm is one of the largest working forests in the state. Hudson Farm’s rich history spans over a century, and the property contains the iconic estate where the idea for the Appalachian Trail was conceived. Today, Hudson Farm pioneers wildlife conservation initiatives throughout the region and serves as a local community steward. Hudson Farm Foundation gives to local Sussex County charities including conservation and species protection projects, various medical causes, veterans, food banks, fire departments, and responsible hunting safety education and outreach. Hudson Farms partners with the National Audubon Society and the Natural Resources Conservation Service.

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