News  Volunteers help clean up Bolton Flats Wildlife Management Area

MassWildlife manages over 226,000 acres of wildlife lands statewide open to the public for fishing, hunting, trapping, wildlife watching, and other outdoor recreation. These lands also provide important habitat for a variety of rare and common wildlife. Unfortunately, MassWildlife staff remove over 100,000 pounds of trash from Wildlife Management Areas every year, but we can't maintain these special places alone.

This fall, the New England Chapter of Backcountry Hunters and Anglers (BHA) coordinated with MassWildlife to organize and conduct a clean-up day at Bolton Flats Wildlife Management Area with a group of member volunteers. Bolton Flats WMA is a beautiful 978-acre property located in Bolton, Harvard, and Lancaster. As the name implies, Bolton Flats is primarily a flood plain for the Nashua, Still, and Dead Rivers and is a popular destination for hunters, anglers, and birders. The mission of Backcountry Hunters and Anglers is to ensure North America’s outdoor heritage of hunting and fishing in a natural setting, through education and work on behalf of wild public lands, waters, and wildlife. This clean-up was part of a broader national effort the organization did with their chapters. Despite high water levels on the property, these dedicated volunteers pushed through difficult conditions to remove over 20 bags of trash, tires, an old gas grill propane tank, and a car fender. After the clean-up, MassWildlife staff picked up the gathered trash for proper disposal. 

You can find Wildlife Management Areas to visit and explore near you using MassWildlife’s Lands Viewer. Anyone interested in organizing a volunteer clean-up on a WMA is encouraged to first contact the MassWildlife District Office nearest them. Click here for MassWildlife District Office contact information.

BHA volunteers clean-up trash at Bolton Flats WMA. Photo courtesy of BHA. 

MassWildlife staff pick up trash for proper disposal after the clean-up.