LOYALSOCK TOWNSHIP PROPERTY OWNER DONATES A CONSERVATION EASEMENT AGREEMENT

WILLIAMSPORT, LYCOMING COUNTY – December 30, 2005 – The Northcentral Pennsylvania Conservancy has added another conservation easement to its growing list of conservation successes. Mr. Visscher and his late wife have owned a Loyalsock Township, Lycoming County property since 1967. As people have built new houses on the outskirts of Williamsport, the area around their property has come under increasing development pressure.

Fields on the higher portions of the property offer spectacular views of the Susquehanna River's West Branch valley and Bald Eagle Mountain. Most of the property is forested, containing a diverse variety of habitats, and has been under a forest management plan since 1992. The landowners have improved their timber stands, maintained existing roads and trails, and constructed a new access road. For many years they heated their home with wood cut from their woodland.

The owners, with their interest in forest management, have a long association with the Lycoming County Woodland Owners Association and did the first work in their woodland through a timber sale in 1971. They learned about the Northcentral Pennsylvania Conservancy through their consulting forester, and wanting to protect the natural and scenic features of their property, worked with the Northcentral Pennsylvania Conservancy to place a conservation easement agreement on 57 acres.

The property can continue to be managed for wildlife habitat, forest products, or recreation. This owner and his family are assured that the traditional working landscape will continue for generations to come.

The Northcentral Pennsylvania Conservancy is a non-profit, regional, land conservation organization whose mission is to conserve the working lands and identifying waters in this area. NPC formed in 1990 and has conserved over 9,000 acres since that time. More information on NPC, how you can help, and what types of land conservation are available can be found at www.npcweb.org, or by calling 570-323-6222.