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Orange County Land Trust awarded $65,000 in state grants

| 28 Apr 2015 | 04:47
    Photo provided by the Orange County Land Trust The Orange County Land Trust held a volunteer workday, which once again included staff from the North Face store at Woodbury Common Premium Outlets, on Earth Day at Birnberg Preserve in Chester to remove garbage and refuse from the entrance of the preserve (which is located just off the Heritage Trail). Pictured from left to right are: Jeremy Schneider, the stewardship and outreach coordinator for the land trust; Eric Roberts, OCLT intern; George Schaberg, OCLT staff; and Josh LaPointe, Michael Cohen, Jen Smith and Eric Eckley, all volunteers from the North Face outlet.
    Photo provided by the Orange County Land Trust The Orange County Land Trust held a volunteer workday, which once again included staff from the North Face store at Woodbury Common Premium Outlets, on Earth Day at Birnberg Preserve in Chester to remove garbage and refuse from the entrance of the preserve (which is located just off the Heritage Trail). Pictured from left to right are: Jeremy Schneider, the stewardship and outreach coordinator for the land trust; Eric Roberts, OCLT intern; George Schaberg, OCLT staff; and Josh LaPointe, Michael Cohen, Jen Smith and Eric Eckley, all volunteers from the North Face outlet.

SUGAR LOAF — The Orange County Land Trust has been awarded $65,000 in grants from the New York State Conservation Partnership Program, a joint program of the Land Trust Alliance and Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to help protect farmland, conserve natural resources, boost outdoor recreation and tourism and advance economic development.

The grants are funded through the Environmental Protection Fund (EPF) and will be matched with an additional $1.7 million in private and local funds.

One of 55 land trustsThe Orange County Land Trust is one of 55 non-profit land trusts from across the state participating in the Conservation Partnership Program. This funding will allow land trusts to create educational programming, conduct outreach to the community and advance efforts to preserve local farms and priority open space areas.

“These vital Conservation Partnership Program grants will enable the Land Trust to pursue additional land conservation projects, engage our local communities, enhance our capability to steward our protected lands and maximize our impact as an organization," Jim Delaune, executive director of the Orange County Land Trust, said in the organization's press release announcing the grants.

$55,000 grantThe Land Trust was awarded $55,000 enabling the creation of a full-time professional position. The position will assist with external communications, manage community outreach and engagement programs and oversee stewardship of their 12 publicly-accessible nature preserves.

The position will also provide support to the Director of Development and Director of Conservation & Stewardship, enabling these staff to focus on fund raising and project cultivation.

$10,000 grant The Land Trust also received a $10,000 Capacity & Excellence Grant to complete a legal review and due diligence in anticipation of acquiring Warwick Conservancy’s conservation easements and stewardship responsibilities.

The Orange County Land Trust is dedicated to preserving Orange County’s rural character, natural heritage and working farms. Nearly 5,000 acres of forests, wetlands, wildlife habitat and farmland forever protected. For information on becoming a member or for ways of giving, call 845-469-0951 ext. 14 or visit www.oclt.org.