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Featured Priority Area:
The Delaware River Corridor stretches more than 90 miles from the northern tip of Bucks County to Trenton, New Jersey and down the eastern border of Philadelphia and Delaware Counties. No landscape captures our natural resources' potential for recreational opportunities, historical significance, ecological strength and high-quality economic development quite like the Delaware River.
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August 2009 Digest
A publication of GreenSpace Alliance
GreenSpace Connect is a digest of natural, recreational, and agricultural open space protection success stories from Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia Counties. These projects are made possible through the wise investment of state, county, local, and private funds. GreenSpace Alliance and our partner organizations are committed to the protection of green spaces as both a sound and strategic investment in our region's economic prosperity.
Sincerely,
Donna Pitz
Executive Director, GreenSpace Alliance |
Delaware River Sojourn Showcases Important Recreational and Environmental Resource
 Delaware River Sojourn participants glided into Penn's Landing on the last leg of their journey after paddling over 65 miles of the Delaware River through bucolic countryside, Revolutionary War battlefields, and former Native American settlements. The 15th annual Delaware sojourn celebrated not only the river's importance as an environmental and recreational resource, but served as a tour of the wide array of outdoor activities that the Philadelphia region can promote to bolster tourism. As traditional industry along the Delaware River has declined, the recognition of its natural resource and economic value for both tourism and local residents has increased. Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources initiated the statewide sojourn concept in 2001 by offering grants to organizations that facilitated a sojourn on a Pennsylvania River. The Delaware River Sojourn received funding and services from over 50 local and regional organizations and businesses. The event was organized in part by the Delaware River Basin Commission and the National Canoe Safety Patrol. |
Preserving Farmland and a Way of Life in Northwest Chester County... It Only Makes Good Sense
 Honey Brook Township, located in the headwaters of the Brandywine Creek, is focused on maintaining its agricultural economy and rural quality of life. Realizing the importance of it agricultural resources, the GSA designated it as part of the North Western Chester County Agricultural Priority Focus Area. This designation supports the Brandywine Conservancy's work in preserving the Township's rich farmland, most of which is owned by the Plain Sect (Amish) community. With a planning and funding framework set up with Conservancy assistance, Honey Brook's land preservation program is showing great success. The number of Township applicants to Chester County's farmland preservation programs increased six-fold since 2005, signaling a sea change in the way Honey Brook's Plain Sect community views land preservation. The County's programs are bolstered by the Conservancy's Amish Easement Acquisition Initiative, designed to preserve farmland owned by Plain Sect members that are reluctant to work with the government. A 60-acre easement along the West Branch of the Brandywine Creek was the first easement acquired by the Conservancy under this new initiative. Additional easements are in the works. |
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Township Partners with Perkiomen Watershed Conservancy to Restore Headwater of the Unami Creek
 Together with the Perkiomen Watershed Conservancy (PWC), Milford Township in Bucks County recently restored a small headwater stream of the Unami Creek. The project, which extended 750 feet along both sides of the headwater, included the removal of several tons of silt and non-native weeds to reestablish the historic stream channel and allowed for the planting of over 480 native trees and shrubs. Tons of rocks, yards of erosion control matting, grass seed, and live stakes were also installed to help stabilize and naturalize the new stream banks. The two main goals for the project were to prevent future flooding by reestablishing the historic flow of the creek and to educate local residents about the importance of properly maintained stream channels and riparian buffers. Using this as a demonstration project, township officials hoped to generate public interest and support for similar future initiatives. The township and the conservancy applied for and received a grant for the project from the Schuylkill River Restoration Fund. This grant program is administered by the Schuylkill River Heritage Area and funded by Exelon Nuclear and the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR). |
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Is there a "Green Lining" to the Economic Downturn?
 As tough economic times turn real estate into a buyer's market, land conservation organizations see a "green lining in dark economic clouds" (TPL Updates). Although funding can be difficult to find, the undeveloped properties coveted by land trusts are more often affordable, and a dearth of buyers has made real estate companies and developers more amenable to negotiating with conservationists. At the same time, the current situation highlights the need for sustained investment in conservation: although opportunities for preserving open space are more frequent, adequate funding must be found to take advantage of these opportunities before land values rise beyond reach once gain. In Chester County's Franklin Township, developer Wilkinson Nottingham LLC had previously received approval for a 54 lot subdivision but instead worked with Natural Lands Trust and the township to preserve the farm property. Read the full story about the green lining of the economic downturn | |
GreenSpace Connect is a digest from the GreenSpace Alliance whose purpose is to highlight successful preservation initiatives and projects throughout Southeastern Pennsylvania. Please contact us through our website if you have any comments or would like to suggest a preservation effort to highlight in an upcoming issue.
Mission: The GreenSpace Alliance promotes and advocates for the preservation and enhancement of recreational, natural and agricultural open spaces to preserve the quality of life in southeastern Pennsylvania.
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