COVENTRY – Over the last decade, the New York state Department of Environmental Conservation has been grouping DEC-controlled state lands into units and looking at ways to manage them more effectively. On Wednesday night, DEC Plan author Robert Off led a meeting in Coventry to discuss a draft plan for the management of 5,446 acres of land in the area.

The Chenango Trail Unit Management Plan discusses a unit of land including the Coventry State Forest, Bobell Hill State Forest, Beaver Flow State Forest, Bumps Creek State Forest and the Oak Ridge State Forest. The properties are found in Coventry and the villages of Oxford, Greene, Bainbridge and Afton.

“The draft plan was done to try to get an overview of the general direction of management the state wants to do over a 10- to 20-year period,” said Off.

According to the DEC web site, “The Unit Management Plan addresses such issues as recreation, timber management, the watershed, wildlife, mineral resources, accessibility, bio-diverstity and public information.”

Some changes are proposed for the unit lands. The UMP calls for informational kiosks to be installed at each of the state forests included in the unit. Parking areas will be constructed at each location. Additional snowmobile trails could be added, as well as an ATV trail accessible to disabled persons. A hiking trail may also be added.