Vermont Land Trust Press Release - Waterbury Resident Conserves Forest and Farm Land

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 11, 2007

Waterbury Resident Conserves Forest and Farm Land

“I’m doing this for my great, great, great grandchildren, and for Vermont” said Emma Ottolenghi at the closing when she conserved her land off Ruby Raymond Road in Waterbury last week with the Vermont Land Trust. Ottolenghi donated a conservation easement to the Vermont Land Trust which will protect her diverse land from development and subdivision in perpetuity.

The Ottolenghi land includes ten acres of pasture and old fields, and forty acres of woodland. The pastures are not actively grazed, but are kept open by periodic mowing. The forest, which is predominantly hardwoods, is enrolled in the State’s Use Value program, and actively managed for timber production under the guidance of a professional forester. With the conservation easement in place the forest will have long-term sustainable management.

“The conservation of Emma Ottolenghi's property is a wonderful contribution to the Waterbury community,” stated Steve Lotspeich, Waterbury Community Planner. “As development pressures increase it is very important that key properties are conserved to maintain the quality of our local environment.”

The Vermont Land Trust helped Emma Ottolenghi conserve her land through the use of a conservation easement. An easement helps landowners voluntarily limit development on productive farmland and forestland, and other meaningful natural and community places. Landowners continue to own, manage, and pay taxes on the land and can sell their land; however, the conservation easement permanently remains on the property. Two acres around Emma’s house are excluded from the easement, and she reserved the right to build a second house on a small pasture near her existing home.

“We really appreciate Emma’s desire to conserve her land” said Mark McEathron, VLT’s Central Vermont Director. “Her love for Vermont and Waterbury is so clear, and she knows that conserving her land will have lasting benefits.”

The Vermont Land Trust (VLT) is a member-supported, nonprofit land conservation organization operating five regional offices throughout the state. Since 1977, VLT has permanently conserved more than 1,400 parcels of land covering 465,000 acres, or about eight percent of the private, undeveloped land in the state. The conserved land includes more than 615 working farms, hundreds of thousands of acres of productive forestland, and numerous parcels of community land. VLT provides technical and legal assistance to individuals, communities and local land trusts to help them achieve their conservation objectives. The VLT Conservation Stewardship office is responsible for long-term monitoring of easements to ensure that the conservation goals are upheld in perpetuity. This conservation work changes the lives of families, invigorates farms, launches new businesses, maintains scenic vistas, encourages recreational opportunities, and fosters a renewed sense of community. For more information or to become a member, contact: Vermont Land Trust, 8 Bailey Avenue, Montpelier, VT 05602, (802) 223-5234.

For more information, please contact: Elise Annes, Vice President for Community Relations, the Vermont Land Trust or (802) 262-1206