Greene Family Lands Preserved Near Lake City

Nearly 1,500 acres in Columbia County were recently protected by a conservation easement purchased by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and facilitated by Alachua Conservation Trust (ACT). The two organizations worked together to help the Greene family sell a conservation easement on land owned by the family for generations. The land is part of the Ocala to Osceola Wildlife Corridor, or O2O. The conservation easement was acquired through Florida Forever, Florida’s premier conservation and recreation lands acquisition program.

The 1,475-acre Greene property lies on the east side of the Suwannee River about 30 miles north of Lake City. The land is an important link between conservation lands along the river and the Pinhook Swamp conservation area, which is adjacent to the Osceola National Forest. Protection of the Greene property contributes to the larger O2O, which in turn is part of the Florida Wildlife Corridor - a statewide network of over 18 million acres that is Florida’s blueprint for landscape conservation. The O2O Corridor is one of the State’s priority conservation areas with over $400 million appropriated for land protection in the State’s 2023 budget. The Greene conservation easement is one of the largest State acquisitions in the O2O.

2024 Landowner Tours Highlight Private Lands Restoration Efforts

Last week, ACT along with the North Florida Prescribed Burn Association (NFPBA) co-hosted Landowner Tours, an annual event which welcomes private landowners, conservation professionals, and members of the public to tour private lands and learn about the benefits of prescribed fire and other land restoration activities.

Over 98 attendees participated in the tours across four days and at multiple properties throughout North Central Florida that are undergoing active land restoration.

"We target October (our state wildflower month) as a time to set aside the tools of our trade and learn the lessons our restoration efforts have to show us," said ACT fire management specialist, Rachel Townsend. 

"This year, the event highlighted topics such as sandhill groundcover restoration, timing of your prescribed fire, Regional Conservation Partnership Programs (RCPP), timber management, and the long-term effects of fire on the landscape."

Landowner tours take place every fall; however, if you'd like to get involved in land restoration activities on your own lands now, please contact ACT and we will be happy to speak with you about conservation options for your land.

Planned Giving: Leave a Legacy, Not a Labyrinth

Through planned giving, ACT supporters can create a legacy for themselves after their passing. We know that the mission of land conservation is a clear passion of every supporter regardless the level of giving. Bequests and planned gifts give every supporter the opportunity to make a significant impact, whether for themselves or their families.

Depending upon the type of planned gift you make, there are likely going to be tax benefits. Some, like charitable remainder trusts, are tax exempt.

Other gifts, like real estate, receive an income tax deduction equal to the value of the property and avoid capital gains taxes. Qualified charitable distributions (QCDs) from a supporter’s IRA account are a way for folks over 70 years old to make tax-free gifts.

Unrestricted gifts give ACT the flexibility and nimbleness to put the gift to work where it is needed most at that moment. However, through planned giving a supporter has the ability to exercise control about how their gift is used. Some supporters will want to focus their planned giving on targeted passions and will use language in their wills and estate documents to pursue those passions posthumously. This is the power of planned giving.

As far as the benefits of planned giving for ACT go, chief among them is security for the future. The knowledge that we, as an organization, are a part of your estate planning gives us the strength to act and to pursue mission critical goals with rock-solid financial footing. With this type of support, ACT's vulnerability to losing out on acquiring key lands needing to be conserved will lessen over time.

Spring 2025 Internship Applications Now Open!

Want to get involved with ACT? Now's your chance! Internship applications for the spring 2025 semester are now open and will close on Friday, December 1st. Spring 2025 internships will run from the 2nd week in January through the last week in April. For more information about ACT's internship program, click on the button below.

If you have questions about the Natural Resource Management Internship, please reach out to Amy Compare here.

If you have questions about the Nonprofit Operations Internship, please reach out to Ema Olmos here.

Upcoming Events

Weekly Walk & Talk at Blues Creek Ravine Preserve

Friday, November 1st from 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Join ACT staff for a guided hike at Blues Creek Ravine Preserve.

Bee City Pollinator Garden Planting at Bubbe's Secret Garden

Saturday, November 2nd from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m.

Come join ACT for a pollinator garden planting in support of the Florida Wildflower Foundation’s Bee City project.

Weekly Walk & Talk at Tuscawilla Preserve

Friday, November 8th from 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Join ACT staff for a guided hike at Tuscawilla Preserve.

Weekly Walk & Talk at LEAFS Preserve (North Entrance)

Friday, November 15th from 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Join ACT staff for a guided hike at LEAFS Preserve - North Entrance.

2024 Emory Cares: Together We Do More at Prairie Creek Lodge

Saturday, November 16th from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

Join Emory Cares - Gainesville and ACT for a Saturday morning invasive plant cleanup. We’ll root out Caesar's weed to make room for important plant species to thrive.

Weekly Walk & Talk at Santa Fe River Preserve (South Entrance)

Friday, November 22nd from 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Join ACT staff for a guided hike at Santa Fe River Preserve - South Entrance.

You make conservation possible! 

Thank you for donating your time, money, and energy to making ACT's work a success.

Please donate today - or consider including ACT in your estate planning - to save wild spaces, train the next generation of land stewards, and open up new public preserves to your community.



THANK YOU!

Alachua Conservation Trust

Phone: 352-373-1078

Email: info@alachuaconservationtrust.org

Website: www.alachuaconservationtrust.org

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