New York Forest Plateau Purchased for Protection

ROME, New York, June 11, 2002 (ENS) - Spruce and northern hardwood forests, wetlands, and the headwaters of three river systems on the remote Tug Hill Plateau in western New York state will be protected from development by a tripartite deal announced Monday.

River on the Tug Hill Plateau (Three photos courtesy Lewis County)

Governor George Pataki said Monday, "Working with The Nature Conservancy, we are able to achieve the goals of our open space plan by protecting natural resources, enhancing recreational opportunities, maintaining a working forest and protecting vital water resources and ecosystems."

The property, known as the East Branch of Fish Creek Site, is located in Lewis County 30 miles north of Syracuse. It is the largest privately owned parcel on the Tug Hill Plateau, the westernmost extension of the Northern Forest, which stretches from New York to Maine.

Fish Creek, the Salmon River and the Mad River all originate on the property. The East Branch of Fish Creek serves as the drinking water supply for the city of Rome and other central New York state residents. Managed for timber production for more than a century, the property is inhabited by fisher, mink, bobcat, beaver, deer, brook trout, waterfowl and songbirds.

Deer at rest (Photo credit unknown)

New York State will pay $3.1 million, using State Environmental Protection Fund resources and funds from the federal Forest Legacy Program administered by the U.S. Forest Service, for the fee ownership and a forest easement. The state will also provide $1.5 million through the Great Lakes Coastal Watershed Restoration Grant Program. A portion of this funding will be used to develop a management plan for the property, with public involvement.

Under terms of the agreement, longterm ownership and management of the property will be shared by New York State, The Nature Conservancy and GMO Renewable Resources of Boston, a private timber company.

Fishing on the Tug Hill Plateau

Henry Tepper, New York state director of the Nature Conservancy said the purchase protects one of the largest and most important forested landscapes in the state. "We are conserving critical natural resources and wildlife habitat, creating new outdoor recreational opportunities and supporting northern New York's forest products economy," he said.

New York state will purchase a 1,350 acre corridor of land from The Nature Conservancy, which will protect nearly 15 miles of the East Branch of Fish Creek.

In addition, the state will acquire a working forest conservation easement on 30,300 acres in the southern portion of the property. GMO Renewable Resources will purchase this parcel subject to the conservation easement, and it will be used for timber harvesting.

David Klein, director of The Nature Conservancy's Central and Western New York Chapter, said, "We're delighted to be part of a conservation project that enjoys strong support from local residents, conservationists, sportsmen, the forest products industry and the state of New York. Preserving these lands will provide countless benefits for years to come."

Tug Hill is known as the snowiest place east of the Rockies, with annual snowfalls of up to 300 inches as a result of local lake effect storms.

The Tug Hill region receives an average of 20 feet of snow each year - the highest total in the eastern United States - making it one of the premier winter sports locations in New York.

The East Branch of Fish Creek Working Group, a coalition of local residents, hunting club members, conservationists, snowmobilers, town officials, representatives of New York State's Department of Environmental Conservation, the Nature Conservancy and the Hancock Timber Resource Group, played a key role in crafting the plan announced Monday. The group, established in 1995 with support from the New York State Tug Hill Commission, recommended that the property be protected in a way that safeguards water quality and natural resources, ensures sustainable forestry and maintains recreational access.

In April 1997, the East Branch of Fish Creek Working Group released a report, "Tug Hill's Eastern Core Forest, Recommendations for the Protection of Jobs, the Environment and Traditional Uses," suggesting that conservation easements be used in the watershed.

The stumbling block was property taxes. But in July 1998 Governor Pataki signed legislation that protects town and school tax bases if the state purchases conservation easements in the Tug Hill region, as it has now agreed to do.