What We See from Here

On February 12, the federal government finalized a rule removing the legal obligation to regulate greenhouse gas emissions, overturning a determination, backed by decades of scientific review, that those emissions endanger human health. The United States has also withdrawn from international climate negotiations, standing alone among nations in that decision.

Merck Forest is not a policy organization; we are a land organization. And we can tell you what we see from here.

Winters are warming. The window for maple sugaring is shifting - starting and ending earlier as it becomes less predictable. Species that have always lived here are under pressure. Species from farther south are showing up for the first time. The forest is reorganizing around us, visibly and now.

The science behind these changes isn't new, and doesn't require a federal ruling to be true.

Merck Forest sits within a 42,000-acre unfragmented forest block — amidst a critical corridor that wildlife depend on to move north as climate zones shift. When we steward this land, we protect the passage species need to survive. When we manage this forest, monitoring what's regenerating, adapting to what's changing, keeping the land whole, we're doing the work that a warming climate makes urgent.

Federal policy likely will be litigated for years. The outcome is uncertain on that front. What isn't uncertain: the land still needs us. The next generation still needs to learn what stewardship looks like in practice. This forest corridor still needs protecting. The work is here, and it's ours to do. We invite you to be a part of it. Visit, volunteer, or support the work. We're glad to have you with us.