Vermont Agency of Natural Resources Holds Listening Tour

Montpelier — The new secretary of the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources is hosting forums around the state in February and March to hear about Vermonters’ experiences interacting with the agency.

Secretary Julie Moore said she’s inviting business owners, planners, real estate agents and others with regular business before the agency to attend one of the five public forums.

The meetings will be held in St. Johnsbury on Feb. 23; Burlington on Feb. 24; Rutland on March 1; Brattleboro on March 2; and in White River Junction on March 2.

More information can be found on the agency’s website .

Snowboarder Strikes Tree At Killington Resort, Dies

Killington — State police say a man died in a snowboarding accident at Killington Mountain.

Police say that 26-year-old James Meyers was not wearing a helmet when he died Saturday morning. The New Jersey resident was snowboarding with friends when he left the trail they were on and hit a tree.

Meyer was transported to Rutland Regional Medical Center and died of injuries sustained in the accident. Police said they were notified of the crash around 10:30 a.m. Saturday.

Online Cookbook Features North Country Business Recipes

Colebrook, n.h. — Want to try cooking some moose chili or fiddlehead ferns? There’s a free online cookbook featuring recipes from 22 businesses in New Hampshire’s North Country.

The Taste of New Hampshire’s Grand North features recipes ranging from beverages to healthy snacks and vegetables, to main courses and desserts.

The cookbook points out the Grand North has many regional foods that are rooted in history, like Native Americans’ use of maple sap. There’s a maple margarita from Fuller’s Sugarhouse, maple teriyaki from The Rocks Estate, and salmon with maple dijon cream sauce from the Rainbow Grille among the recipes.

Desserts include peppersass cookies from the Mount Washington Cog Railway, white chocolate dipped ginger cookies from Santa’s Village, and the Riverfire Pumpkin Pie.

Senator’s Bill Would Make Child Services Its Own Agency

Concord — Lawmakers are considering making New Hampshire’s child services agency its own department, breaking it away from the health department.

The Division for Children, Youth and Families has been facing scrutiny and reforms following several high profile deaths and a report that found it is badly understaffed.

Republican Sen. Sharon Carson is proposing a bill to split it from the health department. The proposal is up for a public hearing Tuesday.

Carson said the purpose of the bill is to provide a more unified approach to administering child protection, foster care, juvenile justice and other child services.

DCYF’s current director, Lorraine Bartlett, is slated to retire March 31.

Utility Regulator to Gather Opinions On Fairpoint Merger

Montpelier — Vermont’s utility regulating Public Service Board is going to be collecting opinions about the proposed merger of FairPoint Communications with Consolidated Communications. The first hearing is set for Wednesday at Montpelier’s Union Elementary School. Additional hearings are scheduled for Feb. 21 in St. Johnsbury and March 2 in Bennington.

The Public Service Department, which represents consumers before the board, is encouraging Vermonters to provide input into the proposed merger, which must be approved by regulators. FairPoint, which has a presence in 17 states, provides telephone and data service to customers in Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. It was announced in December that the Illinois-based Consolidated planned to buy FairPoint for $1.5 billion.

2 Dead, 1 Missing After Snowmobile, Sled Accidents on Lake

Moultonborough, n.h. — New Hampshire’s governor said two people are dead and one is missing after falling through the ice on Lake Winnipesaukee. Gov. Chris Sununu told reporters Saturday evening there have been multiple accidents throughout New Hampshire involving snowmobiles and sleds. Sununu confirmed the fatalities in two different locations on the lake. Both accidents were on the northern end of the lake. The governor said there is still one person missing on the southern side. No one has been identified.

— Wire reports