Today the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy (WPC) announced the donation of a conservation easement from a private landowner, Marjorie F. Green, on her 50-acre property in Homer Township, Potter County.
With this donation, Green is ensuring that future land use and development on the property will be limited to protect wildlife habitat, water quality, and forests. Green acquired the property with her late husband nearly 50 years ago, and has lived there since the early 1990’s. This is the first conservation easement in Potter County to be donated to the Conservancy.
The property is located in the Sinnemahoning Creek watershed and includes mostly forested slopes of hardwoods and hemlock, wetlands, and high-quality streams with substantial beaver dams. Heth Run flows into South Woods Branch on the property, and both streams support naturally reproducing populations of brook trout. The property, adjacent to the Susquehannock State Forest, is also known to fans of famed local writer Margaret Sutton as the setting of some of her Judy Bolton Mystery Series novels.
Conservation easements are permanent deed-restriction agreements tailored to meet specific landowner needs and conservation goals. They limit certain types of development and help land stay natural in perpetuity even if it is sold. Recently, the federal government made enhanced income tax incentives for conservation easements a permanent part of the Internal Revenue Service code. Although these incentives will help attract more easements, Green elected not to receive any tax benefits for her donation due to her strong beliefs in conservation and the importance of preserving the local community.
“We’re so happy that now Southwoods Farm and its unique and precious natural features will forever be preserved for future generations, just as it is now, thanks to the perpetual care and guardianship of the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy,” said Green.
The Conservancy currently holds conservation easements on nearly 36,000 acres of land in Western Pennsylvania.
“Potter County is one of Pennsylvania’s special, really remarkable places,” said Tom Saunders, president and CEO of the Conservancy. “It is a rural and beautiful landscape of deep forests, mountain streams and winding roads. It’s a magnificent area for hiking, camping, hunting or fishing. We are glad that this property will remain in private ownership and be protected for generations to come.”
The Conservancy welcomes inquiries from landowners interested in learning more about conservation easements or other conservation options. For more information, please contact WPC at 412-288-2777 or info@paconserve.org.
###
Photos have been made available courtesy of the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy:
High-res photos: http://bit.ly/1UcqhJs and http://bit.ly/1UcqmNl
Photos for web use: http://bit.ly/1UcquMD and http://bit.ly/1RnhxKE
About the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy:
The Western Pennsylvania Conservancy (WPC) enhances the region’s quality of life by protecting and restoring exceptional places. A private nonprofit conservation organization founded in 1932, WPC has helped to establish ten state parks, conserved more than a quarter million acres of natural lands and protected or restored more than 3,000 miles of rivers and streams. The Conservancy owns and operates Fallingwater, which symbolizes people living in harmony with nature. In addition, WPC enriches our region’s cities and towns through 130 community gardens and other green spaces that are planted with the help of about 12,000 volunteers. The work of the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy is accomplished through the support of more than 10,000 members. For more information, visit WaterLandLife.org.
