On the mission to acquire the 34-acre cress farm property at the Letort headwaters, CPC was approved for a major grant by Cumberland County's Land Partnerships Grant Program in the amount of $116,500. The Land Partnerships Grant Program seeks to allocate monetary awards to organizations with innovative land conservation initiatives. The grant approval marks a big step forward in the process of acquisition, an effort that has been ongoing since 2015. Thank you, Cumberland County!
Other major grant funding to support the acquisition includes a lead grant from the PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources totaling $200,000 and a $28,000 commitment from South Middleton Township. Thanks to these public grant programs and generous private contributions, CPC is now in the process of settlement, which will take place over the next several months. The Letort headwaters property will become CPC's core nature preserve, offering a wealth of opportunities to advance its land protection and stewardship mission in the community. With a purchase price of $400,000, CPC has raised over 90% of required funds.
CPC's goal is to protect, restore, and maintain the limestone spring tributary to the Conodoguinet Creek and its surrounding wetlands and uplands. The wetland and stream is at risk of pollution from construction and agriculture, including soil erosion, and fertilizer, pesticide, and road runoff. CPC will set out to create restored high-quality wetlands, improve trout habitat and spawning, remove invasive plant species. Additionally, we plan to secure public access to this prominent hiking and angling destination, and preserve the historical significance of the site as the first settlement and trading post of James LeTort. The Conservancy's acquisition will allow for possible future extension of the LeTort Spring Run Nature Trail.
We extend a huge thank you to our partners who have been critical to making this project a reality: PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Cumberland County, South Middleton Township, Cumberland Valley Trout Unlimited (CVTU), Letort Regional Authority, Cumberland Valley Visitor's Bureau, Safari Club Blue Mountain Chapter, Pennsylvania Audubon, ALLARM, The Nature Conservancy, Cumberland County Historical Society, and PA Fish and Boat Commission. We look forward to continue working in partnership to advance our overlapping goals for the Letort Spring Run watershed
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