Autumn 2000 Online Edition Newsletter
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President's Message - Clare Oskay
What Do We Do With the Land? Johnson County Introduced to CILTI - Mary Wollitz-Dooley
The Land Trust Alliance Opens Midwest Office
Indiana's Public Lands
Autumn has always been my favorite time of year. The muggy days of
summer have given way to cool, crisp mornings and bright blue skies.
Trees and shrubs have turned various shades of gold, orange and
crimson, punctuated with bright red and orange berries. Squirrels and
other wildlife are in constant "scurry" mode, stocking up for the
upcoming winter.
For CILTI, autumn also means stewardship days. Stewardship is a vital
part of any land trust's mission, and CILTI is no exception. In a
recent journal of the Land Trust Alliance, a national coalition of
local land trusts to which CILTI belongs, Jean Hocker, LTA President,
compares neglecting stewardship to 'working hard to buy a sleek sports
car and then abandoning it to rust in the rain."
Stewardship encompasses much more than posting our boundaries and
picking up trash--it includes taking the necessary steps to ensure that
the land we have worked so diligently to acquire remains in its
protected and natural state for future generations to enjoy. Invasive
plants, which may threaten the natural features or habitat we are
trying to protect, must be kept under control. Certain accommodations
must be made to each property based upon its visitation.
Our dedicated Stewardship Chair, Ted Harris, has worked over the years
to develop management plans for each of CILTI's properties. These plans
are tailored to each property's needs and protection goals. Volunteer
stewards visit each property periodically to monitor the property for
potential management problems, including trespass or overuse, exotic or
invasive plants and safety hazards. Steps are then taken to rectify any
problems.
CILTI's stewardship work is an excellent opportunity to become involved
in "hands on" land protection. If you have a few extra hours and would
like to become involved, please contact a Board member or one of our
stewards, who are listed elsewhere in this newsletter.
Our scheduled workdays are on October 21 at Burnett Woods and on
November 18 at the Glick Nature Preserve. We plan some trash pickup and
minor trail maintenance. Autumn is great time of year to visit either
of these properties. Please join us. You might also consider bringing a
young person with you. It's never too early to begin teaching the
importance of turning our land over to the next generation in a better
condition than we found it.
Fifty acres of woods and a streambed, next to fields that the
retirement-aged owner can no longer farm. Developers want it. Is there
any way to keep it as is? To address such issues, Clare Oskay,
President of Central Indiana Land Trust Inc. welcomed members of the
Franklin area community to a meeting sponsored by the Johnson County
Community Foundation on Tues. evening, Oct. 10. The meeting site,
provided by the Johnson County Soil and Water Conservation District,
was in the former Franklin High School. Les Zimmer, of the Nature
Conservancy and a CILTI Board member who was born and raised in
Franklin, returned to his home town to "hold a conversation" with folks
about ways to maintain some of the values they grew up with together.
Like appreciating the soil and the landscape; and recognizing that land
is finite -- no more of this limited commodity is being made. Zimmer
noted, as his high school biology teacher pointed out, that planet
earth also has all the water it will ever have. What we do with the
land and the water is our choice. And we have options.
The program started with an informative and attractive slide
presentation by Tom Swinford, Regional Ecologist for Indiana Dept. of
Natural Resources and CILTI Board Member. Swinford displayed wonderful
photographs, ranging from closeups of flowers and amphibians to aerial
views of the land, as he spoke about features of Johnson County -- the
land and its creatures -- and why they need protection.
Johnson County, which is subject to intense development pressure, has
provided rich farmland for many. It is also part of the Sugar Creek
floodplain, where watershed protection is a priority, both to prevent
flood damage including degradation of bottomland farming sites, and to
preserve rich native woodland species -- trees, wildflowers, birds, and
other wildlife.
There are only a handful of sites on the entire globe where some
mussels are found, and Johnson County is one of them. The humble
shellfish is a monitor of water quality, and in healthy stream
conditions some species live 40 years.
Seep springs are found in the area, home to many wetland species. Queen
of the Prairie hasn't been spotted there yet but Swinford is sure it
must be around. He knows there are Chinqapin Oak, whose acorns are
devoured by many birds and small mammals. The Red Headed Woodpecker, a
diminishing species, depends on woodlands like some found here for food
and shelter. Just as many of the planet's warbler species seek nesting
sites in Indiana woods. Special land -- worth saving.
Property rights are also worthy of respect. Which is why our land trust
works the way it does. CILTI explores options with landowners for
several different ways to sustain income, or gain a tax benefit while
keeping some of the land just the way it is.
Our goal is to find good matches between owners and the land itself.
There are times that the natural features of the land merit something
other than commercial or residential development. Use of easements,
partial ownership by, or donation to a land trust can make good sense
for both landowners and the land.
The Land Trust Alliance (LTA), of which CILTI is a member, has expanded
its regional services by opening a program in Kalamazoo/Portage, MI. It
will be directed by Renee Kivikko, former executive director of the
Southwest Michigan Land Conservancy for six years. Prior to that Ms.
Kivikko worked for 10 years with the Kalamazoo Nature Center in grants
administration and program management.
Jean Hocker, President of LTA, commented that "land trusts in the
Midwest are doing an impressive job of protecting open spaces
threatened by development pressures. But the challenges are great.
Under Renee's guidance, LTA will help the region's land trusts succeed
as quickly and effectively as possible, and while there's still time."
A major grant from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation has made this
expansion of service possible.
Central Indiana Land Trust has benefited from information/expertise of
LTA, and Board Members have attended some annual conferences. CILTI has
formally adopted the Standards and Practices LTA has outlined for
viable, accountable, professional performance by land trusts. LTA's
placement of a regional office to include Indiana in its service area
is seen as a welcome opportunity for access to additional assistance.
Looking at public lands in Indiana, the Department of Natural Resources
determined that the total public outdoor recreation area available per
person averages 0.15 acre. Within the 24 counties serviced by Central
Indiana Land Trust Inc., the public outdoor recreation area available
ranges from 0.01 - 0.05 acre in 14 counties, 0.06-0.15 acre in 3
counties, 0.16 - 1 acre in 7 counties, and 1.01 - 1.5 acres in one
county. When individual counties tally and plan open space or
recreation areas, their figures may include privately owned land as
well as spaces such as school grounds and interstate highway rest
areas! If people are to truly have experiences that re-create their
spirit, areas preserved for their natural habitat value need to be
acquired before it's too late.