Buys almost 1,000 acres in Steuben County CORNING — The Finger Lakes Land Trust (FLLT) says it has completed the largest conservation project in its 35-year history with the purchase of nearly 1,000 acres, including 1 mile of frontage along the Canisteo River. The 992-acre property is located in the towns of Erwin and Lindley […]
Buys almost 1,000 acres in Steuben County
CORNING — The Finger Lakes Land Trust (FLLT) says it has completed the largest conservation project in its 35-year history with the purchase of nearly 1,000 acres, including 1 mile of frontage along the Canisteo River.
The 992-acre property is located in the towns of Erwin and Lindley in Steuben County, just southwest of Corning, per its Feb. 15 announcement.
The land purchase was made possible by the FLLT’s internal revolving loan fund that is utilized for time-sensitive acquisitions and replenished either through fundraising or the sale of land to a public-conservation agency.
The property lies within an identified Habitat Linkage Zone by the New York Natural Heritage Program and is home to black bears and bald eagles. It contains forested hillsides, multiple streams, small meadows, and miles of existing trails.
Visible from Interstate 99, the Steuben County property has an elevation of 1,520 feet at its highest point, the FLLT noted.
The organization says protecting this property will expand outdoor recreation opportunities, safeguard wildlife habitat, and enhance water quality in the Canisteo River and further downstream. The Canisteo is a tributary to the Tioga River in the Susquehanna River basin of the Chesapeake Bay watershed, FLLT said.
The property acquired the name “Bad Bear Hill” many years ago when the previous landowner was planting trees for reforestation. Plastic tree protectors were placed around the young trees to guard against damage from deer. However, curious bears found that the tree tubes were “great chew toys, and pieces were found scattered throughout the forest.”
The FLLT intends to convey Bad Bear Hill to New York State as an addition to the adjacent McCarthy Hill State Forest, which will more than double in size as a result. After developing an interim-management plan, the FLLT will open the property to the public for daytime use, sometime during this spring.
“This was truly an exceptional opportunity,” Andrew Zepp, executive director of FLLT, said in its announcement. “Our projects regularly involve working with multiple landowners to conserve the landscapes of the Finger Lakes. This single acquisition is large enough to provide an immediate positive impact for multiple wildlife species while also providing local residents with room to roam.”
By working with landowners and local communities, the Finger Lakes Land Trust has protected more than 32,000 acres of the region’s undeveloped lakeshore, rugged gorges, rolling forest, and scenic farmland, it said.
The Ithaca–based FLLT owns and manages a network of more than 45 nature preserves that are open to the public and holds perpetual conservation easements on 187 properties that remain in private ownership. The organization also provides programs to educate local governments, landowners, and residents about conservation and the region’s natural resources.
