MHLC Announces Protection of 287 Acres in Town of New Scotland
The Mohawk Hudson Land Conservancy received a donation of 287 acres of land in the Town of New Scotland from Katherine and John Barber of Seattle, WA. The property had been in Katherine Barber's family for a number of years and she wanted to see it protected. As Katherine says, "This land has been in my family since the 1930s when my grandfather, Ten Eyck T. Mosher, bought it at tax sales. I remember many summers of exploring it with my father, standing on the escarpment, and looking over the valley around Albany day dreaming about what it would be like to live there."
This property is the largest donation of land that the Mohawk Hudson Land Conservancy has received since its founding in 1992. The land includes part of the ridge separating the Hannacroix and Onesquethaw watersheds, and steep slopes on both side of the hill.
It is within sight of MHLC’s Bennett Hill Preserve, near TNC’s Hannacroix Ravine Preserve, and adjacent to private land protected by a conservation easement.
MHLC has identified the Helderberg Escarpment as a priority area for protection and this parcel lies within this area.
The forested hillside and steep slopes provide scenic value from the valley below and to motorists driving along Rt. 443 and preserves the rural character of the area.
The size of this parcel and its proximity to other protected land in the area make it very desirable for protection. As land development accelerates in the region, these large protected parcels
of nearly 800 acres will play an increasingly important role for wildlife habitat and protection of watersheds.
Mohawk Hudson Land Conservancy Announces Protection of 349 Acres in Rensselaerville and Berne and 72 acres in New Scotland
The Mohawk Hudson Land Conservancy (MHLC) is pleased to announce the completion of four land conservation agreements totaling 349 acres in Rensselaerville and Berne. The conservation agreements provide the owners with assurance that the natural, agricultural, and scenic values of their properties will be permanently protected from development.
Two of the easements in Rensselaerville are on lands owned by Paul Baitsholts and Helene Goldberger. One parcel is 111 acres and contains a mix of woods and hay fields.
This property adjoins the state owned Partridge Run Wildlife Management Area in the Town of Berne. The other property with an easement is 33 acres and called Lone Goose Pond.
Another of the easements, donated by Ginny Carter, covers 162 acres of property along Hale Road in Rensselaerville.
The property is a mix of fields and woodlands, with significant acreages of prime soils, the property provides opportunities for future agricultural endeavors.
The last easement in Rensselaerville covers 43 acres of land also along Hale Road. This property is adjacent to lands owned and protected by the Huyck Preserve in Rensselaerville.
The property is a mix of open fields and woods. The fields are mowed on a rotating basis to provide habitat for birds.
The easement in New Scotland is 72 acres of land along Delaware Turnpike. It is a beautiful parcel and includes soils which tend to be wet, producing an area of woodcock habitat. The bedrock on most of the property is limestone and is identified in State Museum documents as susceptible to sinkhole development.
MHLC Receives $70,000 in Grants
In 2009, MHLC received a two-year $55,000 Professional Development Grant to hire our Development/Outreach Coordinator, Anne LaSalle. Anne works part time and is responsible for coordinating MHLC's comprehensive development/outreach program to secure the financial resources needed to support the Conservancy’s increasing amount of conservation work in Albany, Schenectady and Montgomery counties.In addition, MHLC received a $10,000 Stewardship Grant which allows the Conservancy to update the property records at its Winn Preserve in the town of Knox and develop plans for the management of its properties. MHLC owns ten preserves open to the public in Albany, Schenectady, and Montgomery counties.
These grants are administrated through the New York State Conservation Partnership Program (NYSCPP), a pioneering public-private partnership managed by the Land Trust Alliance and overseen by DEC. The NYSCPP is funded by the state Environmental Protection Fund and in 2009 awarded $1.4 million to 47 land trusts. Since 2002 the program has invested in more than 275 projects benefiting 67 different land trusts across the state.