Sanbornton commission to trial iNaturalist, draft baiting policy after HB 592 hearing update

At its Jan. 8 meeting, the Sanbornton Conservation Commission discussed wildlife data-collection methods and a possible policy on wildlife baiting for town-owned properties.

Brian LaRoche briefed the commission on a recent hearing on House Bill 592 and described trialing game-trail tracking with Google Maps. Chair Karen Bordeau suggested eliminating some factors from the tracking methodology to produce more concise habitat corridors; Bob Silvia raised questions about how the commission should define what constitutes "game." Brandon Deacon emphasized that gathered data should be accessible to town officials and residents.

LaRoche volunteered to pilot iNaturalist as a data-gathering platform; he, Dave Perry, and Chris Fontenot will work to establish an iNaturalist project and report back to the commission. The group framed the initiative as an effort to create a town-level wildlife inventory that could inform corridor planning and land-use discussions.

On related business, Brad Crosby and Don Noyes presented two town-owned parcels proposed as suitable for wildlife baiting: Map 25, Lot 18 (about 69 acres on New Boston Road) and Map 6, Lot 2 (about 25 acres near New Hampton). Brandon Deacon said he will draft a town policy that addresses baiting and hunting on town-owned lots and will include a spreadsheet indicating which activities would be permitted on each parcel. He said the policy would include a random, fair selection system for granting permission, but the commission did not decide the selection method at the meeting. Paula Lewis of Shute Hill Road asked who would be authorized to bait; that question remains open.

No formal votes were recorded on either the data initiative or the baiting policy; both items were advanced as staff and volunteer tasks for further work and reporting.