Unchecked Development Could Threaten Future Of Mass. Forests (The Associated Press)

BOSTON — A new study is warning that if left unchecked, the ongoing loss of forests in Massachusetts will undermine land conservation, threaten water quality and limit natural protections from the harsher aspects of climate change.

The two-year study released Wednesday by researchers at Harvard University and the Smithsonian Institution projects how the state’s forests could change over the a 50-year period under four different scenarios.