All Things Considered on WAMC

The Vermont town of Canaan has taken ownership of 424 acres to create a community forest.

Vermont Public Radio reports town officials say the property will be used for a variety of economic, educational, recreational and conservation purposes. For example, it will generate income through sustainable timber harvests and provide an outdoor classroom for local schools.

Burlington's City Council has voted to reserve first-option rights on the purchase of a hydro plant on the Winooski River.

The Burlington Free Press reports that means the city's Electric Department will pay a $100,000 deposit to the private owners of the 7.3 megawatt Winooski One plant.

That deposit would either apply to the purchase price, or be returned if city voters don't authorize funds for the deal.

The full price of the three-turbine facility hasn't been determined.

General Dynamics is laying off about 50 employees in Vermont and 30 in Maine.

Company communications director Karl Johnson attributes the layoffs to the company completing its work on special armor for military vehicles and a decline in demand for guns.

He says the cuts will be to both hourly and salaried employees in administrative, engineering, management and manufacturing support.

The layoffs will be in Williston and in Saco, Maine.

A new national ranking puts Vermont dead last in per-student funding at its one publicly supported research university.

The National Science Board, which oversees the National Science Foundation, says per-student state funding at the University of Vermont declined from $4,653 in 2002 to $3,482 in 2010.

But officials at the University of Vermont say the statistic might be skewed by the rapidly growing student body in recent years. The school has grown in the past decade from fewer than 8,000 undergraduates to more than 10,000 as of last year.