Audubon Vermont backs permitting reforms but urges targeted, not blanket, use of "Stony Brook" screening

An Audubon Vermont representative told a committee on Feb. 5 that a recent permitting report contains sensible reforms for forest-products permitting but cautioned against applying its proposed "Stony Brook" screening automatically to every project.

The presenter, identified in the transcript as Speaker 1 (Audubon Vermont representative), said the National Audubon Society is working across the hemisphere to reverse steep bird population declines and emphasized the local importance of Vermont as a breeding region. "We're seeing a very significant decline in bird species," the speaker said, noting an estimate that "almost 3,000,000,000... birds have been estimated to have been lost" since 1970 and that 170,000,000 Eastern Forest birds are estimated to have been lost.

Why it matters: Speaker 1 argued that those declines are linked to habitat loss and climate change and that forestry policy and permitting decisions in Vermont affect breeding bird populations. The presenter described programs that pair conservation with working lands, including bird-friendly maple initiatives, forester endorsement efforts, riparian restoration, on-site demonstration thinning at the Green Mountain Audubon Center, and partnerships with the Vermont Youth Conservation Corps and AmeriCorps.

On the permitting report, the presenter said the study did "a very good job" identifying where the permitting process is functioning and where gaps remain. The key policy concern the speaker raised was how and when to use the report's recommended Stony Brook screening tool. "The question was, do you do it in a blanket form, which would actually require a lot more steps in the permitting process for everybody? Or do you try and isolate it to the kinds of projects where it would make sense?" the presenter asked, recommending that the Land Use Review Board and district coordinators help applicants at the front end rather than making Stony Brook automatic for all applicants.

Committee response and next steps: Committee members acknowledged the trade-offs. A committee member (Speaker 4) said the Land Use Review Board will return to the committee to "dig into this a little bit more" at the committee's request, and the transcript shows plans for further discussion at the next session.

Details and context: Speaker 1 described Audubon Vermont's local operations at the Green Mountain Audubon Center (presenter noted roughly 255 acres of trails and an annual engagement figure of about 5,000'6,000 people) and said about half of their roughly 14 staff work on conservation programs. The group reported working with 42 landowners last year to steward priority-bird habitat across more than 1,200 acres. Speaker 1 framed their position as supportive of the report overall but urged the committee to hear additional stakeholder perspectives, particularly from the Land Use Review Board, on how to implement Stony Brook without imposing unnecessary burdens on small applicants.

The committee did not vote on any recommendation during this session; the Land Use Review Board is scheduled to return for further discussion.