The Centre County Farmland Trust (CCFT) has received two new conservation easement donations to protect farms in Potter Township and Haines Township.
Conservation easements are deed restrictions that limit development and protect a property’s natural resources in perpetuity, even if it is sold. CCFT, which has been working to conserve farmland and open spaces in Centre County since 1994, now holds 14 conservation easements totaling 1,300 acres.
The Potter Township easement is on the 84-acre Rossman family property along the north side of Route 45 between Old Fort and Spring Mills. The easement means the land will continue to be used as a working farm.
The farm is a Century Farm that has been owned by the Rossman family for more than 100 years. In 2009, its original barn built in 1862 caught fire, but was rebuilt in five weeks with the aid of the local community. The farm is used for crops and pasture for dairy cows.
“This is an exciting project for the Centre County Farmland Trust,” CCFT Executive Director Sarah Walter said in a release. “The legacy represented by this land is an important part of our community’s heritage, and that is what this family wanted to protect.”
The Rossman farm is the fourth property in Potter Township to be preserved by CCFT.
The Haines Township easement is on a 186-acre property owned by Dale Stover and is co-held with the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy (WPC). As with the Rossman property, the easement ensures the land will continue to be used as a working farm.
The Stover land runs along Brush Mountain and includes areas of Bald Eagle State Forest.
“The farm has been in my late wife’s family since 1945,” Stover said in a release. “This is a fitting way to honor her and the East Penns Valley residents by preserving it for future generations.”
Under limestone bedrock on the property is spring-fed groundwater that feeds Penns Creek, part of the Chesapeake Bay watershed. The easement will limit development that could impact the watershed.
CCFT and WPC will monitor the property annually.
“We’re excited to partner with the Conservancy on this conservation easement,” Walter said. “This is the first time we’ve co-held an easement with another land trust, and doing so allows both organizations to work closely in the best interest of the community and conservation.”
