Page 8 - wildlands 2024 spring Newsletter v2_Neat

Wildlands prefers to de-escalate
land conflicts, but sometimes it
takes more to fulfill our moral
and legal obligations.

Standing Up On conservation lands, conflict is the rule, not
the exception. Diverse flora and fauna compete
for limited habitat. Rivers, forests, and fields
battle over millennia to gain footholds in
for Our Lands local landscapes. Human activity can further
complicate turbulent ecosystems.

Conflict is not only natural, but integral to our
appreciation of wild places. As stewards of
shared outdoor spaces across Southeastern
Massachusetts, Wildlands Trust embraces the
conflicts that necessarily arise, responding
to each with awareness and empathy for the
complex interactions that often resist simple
solutions. But when the occasional conflict
threatens our ability to carry out our mission,
Wildlands is prepared to stand up for our lands,
and the people and wildlife who depend on
them.

Littering is among the most frequent issues
we encounter on our trails. In most cases,
Wildlands responds through public education
and volunteer clean-up. But when a Plymouth
resident began using a local preserve as his
personal dump in late 2020, the unprecedented
severity of the infraction forced us to adopt a
uniquely severe response. Wildlands contacted
the police, resulting in the District Attorney
filing charges against the perpetrator and
ordering him to pay restitution for the costly
clean-up.

Rarely, disputes over land rights compel us
to the courtroom. When abutters blocked the
only road into one of our Rochester preserves
Director of Field Operations in 2017, Wildlands’ legal and moral obligation
Erik Boyer at Cortelli Preserve
in Plymouth. to steward the land came under threat, leaving
us no choice but to file a lawsuit. In January
2024, our investment and persistence finally
paid off when the Plymouth County Superior
Court awarded us a prescriptive easement
over the road, restoring access to the preserve.
A prescriptive easement is a legal right-of-
way to land owned by someone else due to
open, longstanding use without permission or
objection from the landowner.

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