For Release: October 5, 1999

Contact: Gail Mastrati 222-4700 ext. 2402

PROVIDENCE - The Rhode Island Chapter of the Society of American Foresters (RISAF) and the Department of Environmental Management have announced their seventh annual "Walk in the Forest" program and invite school classes and other groups to participate. The walks are by reservation only. Open tours for the general public are also offered.

"The 'Walk in the Forest' program is scheduled in the fall because it is such a beautiful time to be in the woods," said DEM supervising forester Paul Dolan, education coordinator of RISAF. Forest educators will lead groups through the woods on 45-minute tours, and explain what participants see around them. "Rhode Islanders are interested in learning about their environmental surroundings," Dolan said. "With 55 percent of Rhode Island covered by forests," he added, "this educational program has always drawn a good response."

Two dates and places have been selected for this year's walks. On Wednesday, October 13, school and group tours will be led from 9 a.m. to noon at Dame Farm, on Brown Avenue, in Johnston, with an open tour for the general public scheduled at 9:30 a.m. On Friday, October 15, school and group tours will be led at the Arcadia Management Area at Browning Mill Pond, on Arcadia Road, in Hope Valley, with an open tour for the general public at 9:30 a.m.

To make reservations or ask questions, contact Dolan at 222-1415 or Christopher Modisette, Chair of RISAF, at 568-1610. (Please leave a message on the answering machines if no one is in the offices.) Once reservations are made, the educators will send informational packages including suggestions on how to prepare a group for the walk.