Farmland, Forest, Streambed Included

Land Trust Protects

133 Acres In Oneonta

ONEONTA – Otsego Land Trust today announced the  donation of a conservation easement on 133 acres of forests, hills, farmland and wetlands located in the Town of Oneonta.

Protection of this property will help reduce land fragmentation in a rural area near the City of Oneonta. Seeing a development threat, the landowners bought the property to conserve its farmland, forests, diverse wildlife habitats, stream and wetland buffers, and natural area corridors, the Land Trust said in a press release.

The Land Trust, based in Cooperstown, did not identify the owners or the exact location of the property.

The conservation easement protects 4,000 feet of stream front, plus soils suitable for future farming, and nearly 60 acres of forest land, which may help reduce erosion, improve water quality, and mitigate the effects of climate change through carbon sequestration and sound management of working lands, the press release said.

“This is a great example of permanently protecting land to limit sprawl,” said Land Trust Executive Director Pat Szarpa.  “There is slow but continuing development in and around the area, as the property is in close proximity to the City of Oneonta. Increased development can threaten the quality of the drinking water supply of the City and other municipalities.”