Fly Like an Eagle

This photograph was taken from an airplane, and depicts... other airplanes!  The CR on this 40 acre property in southeastern MA preserves wildlife habitat for rare species, as well as water quality and soil protection on the property, but also contains a reserved right to continue use of the owner's grass airstrip! With close to 350 properties under CR across the state, there are some unusual activities that are allowed under the restrictions. As for explanations?

Every CR that we accept is the result of careful negotiations with the landowner, whether a private individual, another land trust, or a city or town.  And, since CRs are flexible documents, they can be adapted to protect the unique characteristics of each property.  A main goal of The Trustees' CR program is to protect the conservation values of our restricted properties, while staying reasonably flexible to the needs and uses that the owner envisions for their land.

It gets pretty interesting when we have to weigh and negotiate unique, pre-existing uses against the perpetual conservation values the land may hold.  Sometimes we are approached by landowners with a high-value conservation property who wish to set aside a portion of their land for an activity that may seem incompatible with land protection. If the overall conservation value of the property is high enough in terms of rare species, forest and habitat connectivity, water supply protection, or other factors, we just may accept the CR.  See our previous posts for other interesting CRs, including the entirety of Nashawena Island, an urban park, and an historic granite quarry!