ATHOL – A peaceful walk in the woods for three local women was diverted when they came upon discarded beer cans that were strewn about the South Athol Conservation Area.
The women also happen to be volunteers for Green Clean Athol which, as an Earth Day project this year, collected two tons of trash throughout town.
Heidi Strickland, who coordinated the GCA event, said she, Pat Roix and Carolyn Corsiglia collected many cans and brought them out of the woods in the spirit of “keeping our conservation land clean and beautiful.” She said they kept finding “more and more” cans as they went along.
The property, which combines 200 acres of land between South Athol Road and White Pond Road, was conveyed to the Athol Conservation Commission in 2016 by the original owners, the LeBlanc and Stoddard families, through the Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust.
According to the Town of Athol Conservation Commission Conservation Lands Rules and Regulations, alcohol is not allowed on Conservation Commission property. A town bylaw stipulates a $50 fine may be imposed for drinking on public property. There is a $150 fine for anyone who dumps or disposes of any cans, bottles, or rubbish on conservation properties.
Strickland said that they also came across areas that show off-road vehicle use, which is prohibited on the property. Conservation Lands Rules and Regulations state that private vehicles are not permitted beyond the locked gates and are subject to a $250 fine. Recreational vehicles, also considered private vehicles, such as motorbikes, dirt bikes, three and four-wheeled all-terrain vehicles, or other wheeled or track recreational motor vehicles, are prohibited from conservation lands.
Snowmobiles are allowed to operate on designated trails and fire roads and must be licensed by the state, with all state and local rules followed.
Athol Conservation Agent Dave Small said the ATV use is coming from the Morgan Memorial and White Pond Road areas on private property and that there are several areas that have been compromised by ATV use. A sign prohibiting off-road vehicles is posted at the South Athol Road trailhead.
Concerned citizens can report off-road vehicle sightings to the police at 978-249-3232, or the Athol Conservation Commission.