The state’s Moose Plate program has proved so popular that it’s starting to take over the alphabet.

When the first Conservation Number Plates were issued in December 2000, the letter “C” for “conservation” was part of each five-digit number combination. As “C” plates sold out, the letter “H,” for “heritage,” replaced the “C.”

Now plates are starting to carry the letter “P,” for “preservation.”

Moose Plates show a drawing of a moose designed by New Hampshire artist Jim Collins, as well as the state motto “Live Free or Die.” They cost an extra $30.

That money goes to support a variety of conservation, heritage and preservation programs in New Hampshire, from planting wildflowers along state highways and studying threatened species, to buying conservation easements.

More than $20 million has been raised since the program began.

The Moose Plate idea was dreamed up by fourth-grade students from Holderness Central School in 1993, and legislation establishing the program passed in 1998.

More information about the Moose Plate program is available at mooseplate.com.

Monitor staff

]]>