eastern shore maryland farmland conservation

land preservation Tag

August 18, 2014

Land and a beetle, preserved

Eastern Shore Land Conservancy this year helped protect more than 170 acres on Girl Scouts of the Chesapeake Bay’s Camp Grove Point in Earleville. The property’s 2,200 feet of eroding cliffs at the mouth of the Sassafras River provide unique habitat needed by the federally threatened Puritan tiger beetle, a creature smaller than the tip of a fingernail yet a fierce predator in the insect world. “We are taking a significant step forward in recovering the Puritan tiger beetle, whose largest global population is found in the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland,” said Genevieve LaRouche, Supervisor, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Chesapeake Bay Field Office. “This partnership illustrates the important role of local groups and landowners in the conservation of our rare native wildlife.” Every year, hundreds of Girl Scouts attend day and residential summer camps and participate in troop camping throughout the year. “Good stewardship of our land is an important part of Girl Scouting,” said Anne T. Hogan, CEO of Girl Scouts of Chesapeake Bay. “Rich with diverse wetlands and upland forests of oak, tulip poplar, beech and hickory, the new easement will permanently protect the area’s sensitive ecosystem,” said Maryland Department of Natural Resources Secretary Joe Gill. “By preserving this critical landscape we can help guarantee the future of the Puritan tiger beetle, as well as … osprey, eagle, deer, fox and many migratory songbirds.” Permanent protection of this land will help meet one of the federal criteria required for recovery of this species—to stabilize six large sub-populations and their habitats in the Chesapeake Bay. With the protections on the Girl Scout property, four sub-populations will be protected in Maryland. “Preservation of this property not only means protection of a unique ecological site,” said Jared Parks, Eastern Shore Land Conservancy Land Protection Specialist. “It preserves a place where generations of girls can go to explore the outdoors and learn about nature with

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February 24, 2014

Leigh family preserves a piece of Betterton

BETTERTON — Rob Leigh thinks often about his grandmother, Lillie Leigh, and the walks they took together when he was a child. They would walk from the Leigh house along the beach in one direction and return through the woods. “I think about that fairly often — the walks we used to have and the help grandparents can be to their grandchildren,” he said. Lillie Leigh would tell her grandchildren, “You’re worth a waterfront farm.” With that phrase, Rob Leigh said, Lillie Leigh put the conservation bug in the ear of her grandchildren. They put value in that property, but Rob Leigh never dreamed he would own it. Years later, his sister would introduce him to his future wife, Linda, on that beach. In the early 1970s, a developer asked Betterton to annex the farm property adjacent to the Leigh family home. Rob and Linda Leigh opposed the development, which would have included a golf course and about 200 houses. The development never came to fruition, and the farm was auctioned in 1997. Rob and Linda Leigh bought the property with the encouragement of the extended Leigh family, in the hopes of preventing another developer from building something not in line with the Leighs’ vision of Betterton. The Leighs immediately evaluated the property, which has been farmed since the 17th century, Rob Leigh said. They worked with Kent County Soil Conservation and the Department of Natural Resources. They put in five waterways to help control erosion, restored a 1-acre pond, planted about 1,800 trees to help absorb runoff, and planted some warm season grasses. In December, the Leighs placed on the property a conservation easement held by Eastern Shore Land Conservancy and Maryland Environmental Trust. “We go up there as a family, and we camp on the farm,” Rob Leigh said. “We do a lot of hiking and fishing,

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January 24, 2014

ESLC Releases 2014 State Legislative Agenda

ANNAPOLIS — Today, Eastern Shore Land Conservancy released its 2014 State Legislative Agenda calling for major investments in rural Maryland, robust land conservation funding, and continued support for locally produced renewable energy projects. Some of the items in the agenda include support for continued conservation program funding, support for the Rural Maryland Prosperity Investment Fund, support for a Cross-Bay Travel Alternatives Study bill, and support for the 2014 Community Renewable Energy Generation bill. ESLC’s agenda points out that conservation monies support much more than farms and scenic landscapes and that these funds help support hunting grounds, parks, bike paths, public access sites and more. “We need to support our farms and resource-based industries here on the Shore, and we can do that through the support for Rural Legacy, Program Open Space, and Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Foundation funding”, said ESLC Policy Manager Josh Hastings. In addition to support for expansion of Maryland Wildlands, the agenda calls for the Maryland General Assembly to pass a Cross-Bay Travel Alternatives study bill which its says could help alleviate Bay Bridge traffic congestion while evaluating options for private investment in cross bay travel. ESLC’s white paper on transportation is available under Public Policy Resources at eslc.org. “How we travel in our rural region is a critical piece of our quality of life,” said ESLC Deputy Director Amy Owsley. “We hope to help focus attention on how best to make the most of our infrastructure through investments in transit and transportation policy innovations. Creativity and partnerships would go a long way to easing some of our most pressing transportation challenges.” ESLC also supports the 2014 Community Renewable Energy bill, which is said to allow Maryland farms and other rural businesses to install renewable-energy-generating devices such as solar panels or a wind turbine and share the energy credits among neighboring subscribers. These

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January 3, 2014

The Good Luck Farm

BUCKTOWN – A piece of the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Scenic Byway has been preserved with a conservation easement, permanently protecting the historic and ecological features of the property. The Goodluck Farm is owned by Millie Lake, Benito Lake, Ellen Bronte Lake, and Ed James. Millie is the granddaughter of Martin Lake, who was born as a slave on The Brodess Plantation before the Civil War, according to a family history written by James. On his fourth try, Martin Lake escaped to freedom on the Underground Railroad (before Tubman was a conductor). Tubman once was enslaved on this property, and according to family history, Martin Lake met her. He joined the Union Army and after the war returned to Dorchester County. He worked for the Brodess family on the lands where he formerly was a slave, and the family gave him about three acres of farmland. Martin Lake’s son, Monroe Lake Sr., inherited one acre of the land and traded it to a family member, Millie Lake Clash. Monroe Lake Sr. also purchased other portions of the Brodess Plantation as they became available. “We are honored to work with the Lake family on protecting this important piece of the Eastern Shore,” said ESLC Executive Director Rob Etgen. “The stories that have occurred on and around this farm are critical to understanding where we have come from – and more importantly where we are going as a community. The conservation easement will protect and enrich these stories for future generations.” The Lake family, descendants of a slave on the farm, now own a large portion of the former plantation and maintain the Brodess family cemetery that still exists there. The Good Luck Farm is preserved under Program Open Space Coastal Resilience Easements, designed to protect areas that could be prone to high waters and storm surges. The easement protects

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September 3, 2012

Abend Hafen

Rick and Kathy Abend, owners of Abend Hafen Farm in Dorchester County, have been members of ESLC since 1992. The German name of their farm translates to “Evening Haven.” The preserved 106-acre sanctuary is well named, as it is certainly a haven for the Abends as well as their dogs, cat and chickens. The Abends grow corn and soybeans, and they steward the forested areas of their property for wildlife habitat and for timber. After a recent harvest, they planted thousands of pine seedlings, among which oak and other hardwoods have sprouted. As the forest grows, the hardwoods will provide mast such as acorns for turkey and deer. A large pond and shallow impoundments are frequented by wood ducks and other waterfowl, while nesting platforms invite osprey and eagles. Rick first learned of ESLC when he was teaching a class about quail. There he met Rob Etgen, Executive Director of ESLC, who was invited to speak about conservation easements. With the rich diversity of habitats he was creating on his farm, Rick was considering how he might preserve the environmental legacy he was creating there and was intrigued by the idea of protecting the land in perpetuity. Rick was pleased that he could write into his conservation plan timber harvest, along with protection of wildlife habitat. The Abends did protect their land, and have been proud ESLC members ever since.

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land preservation Tag

Land and a beetle, preserved

Leigh family preserves a piece of Betterton

ESLC Releases 2014 State Legislative Agenda

The Good Luck Farm

Abend Hafen

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