Vermont Land Trust Press Release - Land Conservation in Pomfret Expands Protected Working Landscape

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE July 14, 2006
Elise Annes, Vice President for Community Relations at 802-223-5234

Land Conservation in Pomfret Expands Protected Working Landscape

POMFRET – Jerry Fields had always planned to conserve her land, but it never seemed to reach the top of her to-do list. This spring, however, after careful discussions with her husband, attorney, and others, she conserved her 115-acre hill farm by donating a conservation easement to the Vermont Land Trust (VLT). The land includes 35 acres of pasture and hayland she leases to an adjacent farmer, and 80 acres of forestland that is actively managed for timber and is enrolled in Vermont’s Current Use program.

Jerry decided to conserve her land to preserve the rural character of Pomfret. “Pomfret won’t stay the same if people don’t make an effort to keep it rural and open,” stated Jerry. “I appreciate that some of my neighbors conserved their land years ago, and that motivated me to act. Hopefully my decision to conserve my land can similarly motivate someone else.”

A recent Pomfret Planning Commission survey revealed that more than 90% of Pomfret residents would like the town to stay rural and open, and want careful zoning to manage future growth. “The Fields property has over three-quarters of a mile of undeveloped road frontage, and therefore impacts the rural and scenic qualities of the area, in addition to the nice agricultural and forest resources,” commented Mark McEathron of the Vermont Land Trust. “We are glad to have been able to help in the conservation of this beautiful land.”

Jerry’s land is located on both sides of Cloudland Road, just north of the intersection with Barber Hill Road. During the summer, a small herd of Black Angus cattle owned by neighboring beef farmer, Bill Emmons, loaf in the shade at the edge of one of Jerry’s pastures.

In the conservation easement, Jerry retained two future house lots located in a small block of forest at the south edge of her property on Barber Hill Road. “I didn’t think that there was an appropriate place for future housing anywhere else on the property,” commented Jerry. “I really felt the core of the property should be conserved.”

With the conservation of the Fields property, VLT has now assisted in the conservation of fourteen properties totaling nearly 2,500 acres in Pomfret. Abutting the Fields’ land is the 1,000-acre conserved Emmons property that is bisected by the Appalachian Trail. Eight other VLT-conserved properties, totaling another 1,000 acres, are in the immediate area.

The Vermont Land Trust helped Jerry Fields 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.

The Vermont Land Trust is a nonprofit organization that works with individuals, organizations, and communities to conserve land for the future of Vermont. In the past 29 years, VLT has helped conserve more than 1,300 parcels of land covering over 454,000 acres or about 8% of the private, undeveloped land in the state. The conserved land includes more than 600 working farms, hundreds of thousands of acres of productive forestland, and numerous parcels of community lands. This conservation work changes the lives of families, invigorates farms, launches new businesses, maintains scenic vistas, encourages recreational opportunity, and fosters a renewed sense of community. For more information, call 802/223-5234 or visit VLT on the web at www.vlt.org.