This map shows the land that was protected in June (in dark green). The other colors are already protected (light green) or will be protected in fall (yellow and red).

Included in these 140 protected acres are forested areas on Brandt Island Road in Mattapoisett, a farm field in Fairhaven by the Mariner Soccer complex, and a marshy, wooded island called Quahog Hill at the confluence of the Nasketucket River and Little Bay in Fairhaven (pictured above).

The Nasketucket Bay Land Conservation Project is an effort to protect more than 400 acres of land around Nasketucket Bay – the largest coastal land conservation project now underway in Massachusetts. The project will also expand public access to Nasketucket Bay so local residents have more opportunities to hike, bike, and enjoy the water.

Nasketucket Bay is one of the cleanest waterways in Buzzards Bay, with rich eelgrass meadows, shellfish beds, and fish and wildlife populations. These healthy conditions are due in part to conserving forests, wetlands, and other important natural areas that help keep our water clean.

Although much of Nasketucket Bay’s shoreline is protected as part of the Nasketucket Bay State Reservation, large tracts of land nearby are still vulnerable to development. Without conservation, this land could be lost forever.

This fall, the Coalition is planning to finish this project by protecting another 250 acres of land, including a connection between the Phoenix Bike Trail/Mattapoisett Rail Trail and Nasketucket Bay State Reservation.