"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has." Margaret Mead, American anthropologist, 1901-1978
National Trust supporters and donors have enabled the National Trust to acquire 30 acres of Norfolk coastline.
The site is at Salthouse, and the Trust is working in partnership with the current grazier, who will manage the land as the National Trust’s tenant.
The Norfolk coast is home to a wide diversity of wildlife, and the space inland will enable the animals to move, adjust and retreat as the coastline changes.
The area is home to over-wintering wildfowl such as Brent Geese.
The land sits next to land already in the National Trust’s care, and that land is managed by the Norfolk Wildlife Trust.
The new acquisition will enable the National Trust to widen and join up habitats – and this will help make nature more resilient along the coastline.
The donors were giving to the National Trust’s Neptune Coastline Campaign which has supported the Trust’s work to care for coastline for 50 years, and will help it well into the future.
Its mission is to conserve native and working landscapes. It seeks to protect rare plant communities, threatened wildlife species, scenic beauties and opportunities to undertake sustainable agriculture. And it gives people the chance to get outside, connect with nature and develop healthy habits with good exercise.
And it’s been able to protect more land, thanks to landowners working with the Conservancy.
A 360 acre farm received protection forever from development, especially from frac sand mining which is very prevalent in the county.
The owners of the farm, Bill and Mary Ann Hein, have achieved this permanent protection of their much loved farm by a voluntary conservation agreement with the Mississippi Valley Conservancy.
The property is protected from future development, mining or any other habitat destruction.
Meantime, Tom and Sharon Sharratt have made their second conservation agreement with the Conservancy for an additional 82 acres of land in Wisconsin. This agreement protects the natural resources on their land by limiting activities that would disrupt the farming, native habitat and wildlife that thrive there.
40 acres of wildlife-rich land has also been added to those properties which are being permanently protected, thanks to self-described biology “nerds” Judy Kingsbury and Leslie Grossberg.
If that wasn’t enough, the Mississippi Valley Conservancy received a rare gift of $1 million from an anonymous donor who wants to see the donation tripled to be a legacy for the Conservancy, which has launched an endowment campaign to fulfil the donor’s vision with a fund called “Our Children’s Natural Heritage Endowment.”
The Conservancy uses public and private money to preserve land, whilst still providing public access on some lands.
$61,000 have been donated so far out of the $100,000 needed. The protection will help protect four hectares of wildlife corridor in the Clearwater River Valley.
This corridor will connect 2 southern lobes of Wells Gray Provincial Park.
This means that cougar, bobcat, wolves, coyotes, grizzly, deer and mouse won’t have to cross private lands when they migrate between the winter and summer ranges.
The private lands in the area are undergoing considerable development pressure, and the conservancy is working to find the final $39,000 of the purchase price by the end of the year so the land can be protected.
So it’s great to go solar, but not at the expense of wildlife habitat.
In the state of New York, Assemblyman Steve Englebright and his colleagues have been fighting to make the pretty stretch of woodland surrounding an abandoned Shoreham nuclear power plant off limits to developers.
And back in January, the Assemblyman co-sponsored legislation to stop the site from being turned into a solar farm.
And good news – over 800 acres of the site has been added to the publicly protected Central Pine Barrens preservation area, as well as portions of Mastic Woods. Plus, elected officials have pushed for the state to buy the land altogether.
About 840 acres of the property is to be bought from the National Grid in increments over a number of years, starting in 2019. The area consists of rolling hills and cliffs, and various species of wildlife. It’s one of New York’s remaining original coastal forest tracts, so it’s an important move in terms of protecting Long Island’s natural heritage. The National Grid had been proposing to bulldoze the forest and build a solar farm in its place.
It is hoped that this purchase will improve the ground and surface water quality and resilience of the coast – and support tourism. Which tourist wants to come to see a solar farm?
Englebright is hoping to save the Mastic acres which is still destined to be a solar farm, and that alternative sites can be used for solar development.
Solar energy is great, but there’s a place for it and forest isn’t one of them.
Well done to Englebright and his colleagues for this move!
In what I think is an incredibly short time, supporters of UK registered charity the World Land Trust have raised £165,000 towards the purchase of tropical forest.
I think it was late March 2018 that the appeal was started, and its success was announced on 12 June 2018 on its website.
This means that the World Land Trust will be able to save 400 acres of tropical forest in the Amazonian Andes of Ecuador.
The habitat is home to sloths, cats, hummingbirds, eagles, frogs and macaws.
The area will be safe under the permanent protection of the World Land Trust’s local partner, Fundación Jocotoco. They will be able to make the purchase and protect the 400 acres of tropical rainforest in the Amazonian Andes. This will extend the existing Narupa Reserve and connect it with nearby national protected areas.
The World Land Trust has previously supported extensions through its Action Fund.
This was an urgent appeal, because there was the danger of a road being built through this ecosystem but the area is now safe.
Such was the response of the World Land Trust supporters that the first part of the area was purchased quite early on in the appeal.
Getting involved gave me a wonderful feeling
Rather than give me a birthday present, I asked my husband to make a donation on my behalf to this appeal, I can’t tell you how much delight and joy my husband’s present has given me. I have a warm glow inside my heart every time I think of it. It is a gift that will truly last and be meaningful. Thank you, my darling!
I also donated myself to this appeal on behalf of my mother, my sister and I in memory of my wonderful father as an early Father’s Day gift. This means that Dad’s presence is scattered around the world – he’s now in Ecuador! He loved making a difference and he adored nature, so this is a great thing to do in his memory. (He's also in Scotland, Sussex, and a few other places besides, because every Christmas and Father's Day and on his birthday, I do something in his memory - plant a tree, adopt an acre etc).
It really does make you feel good to contribute to something so many others have and join in the efforts to help conservation and endangered animals.
The World Land Trust has an action fund you can donate to (if you've missed this appeal above and want to do something) which means that they can respond rapidly to urgent conservation needs.
©Jason Hollinger