Baker Family Public Forest

The Baker Family Public Forest Reserve is a 205-acre forest located in the northwestern corner of Fitchburg, MA. The entirety of the City of Fitchburg's ~2,000 acres of northern drinking supply watershed lands is managed by the City's Department of Public Works, Division of Water Supply, and is protected by a Conservation Restriction (CR) conveyed by the City to the Massachusetts Department of Fish and Game, Division of Fisheries and Wildlife in 2009. The CR precludes development but permits timber harvesting. Under the terms of a registered Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) entered into in 2017, the 205-acre portion of the Northern Watershed lands designated by the City as "The Baker Family Public Forest Reserve" is protected from timber harvesting for 30 years (through 2047). The MOU includes a provision whereby this protection can be renewed under similar terms in the future. This forest reserve, while not old growth, is a mixed-age, biodiverse northern hardwood/white pine forest with many mature trees. It includes a large wooded swamp, occupies the highest elevation land (>1,000 ft above sea level) within the Northern Watershed lands, and is accessible to the public via several informal, unmarked trails.