ESLC announces transfer of 323 acres to state for forest management
Cambridge, Maryland – August 11, 2008 – The Eastern Shore Land Conservancy, a private, non-profit land conservation organization dedicated to the preservation of farmland and habitat on the Eastern Shore, has announced that 323 acres have been approved by the Maryland Board of Public Works for transfer to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. The Lindner Property, which was purchased by ESLC last year, was approved for purchase by the state of Maryland’s Program Open Space program for $2.5 million.
It will be managed by the Department of Natural Resources’s Forest Service as part of the Chesapeake Forest Lands, an innovative program designed to manage forestland for generation of forest products, local employment and recreational opportunities. The Lindner property consists of mostly forests containing high quality Delmarva fox squirrel habitat. Consisting of 218 acres of forests and forested non-tidal wetlands, the property also is a high priority conservation acquisition under the state’s Program Open Space Stateside Targeting System. The property is located proximate to the Blackwater Resorts property on the Little Blackwater River acquired by the State in 2007 and Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge. .
“Adding this land to our protected forests will help our community to combat climate change, as these forests provide critical storehouses for carbon, while ensuring that the landscape continues to benefit our local economy through renewable resources, jobs, and recreation,” said Meredith Lathbury, ESLC’s Director of Land Conservation. “We are so pleased that this will be in the care and stewardship of the State of Maryland and that the Lindner family’s wishes to have it protected forever will be carried out.”