40 acres added to East Over Reservation, Rochester and Marion

East Over Farm (Photo by Tom Kates)

Wandering the paths of the East Over Reservation in Rochester, you might forget you’re only a stone’s throw from the urban environments of nearby cities like New Bedford and Fall River. Meandering through the tall grass, along the stone walls and past the bird boxes and one-time pastures, you’re transported not only far from the city but also far back in time. Back to a simpler time, when this land was pasture and farmland, when agriculture was a principal way of life. This seventy-five acre landscape is a hidden jewel and a quintessential example of the kind of property The Trustees of Reservations protects across Massachusetts. Now, additional pristine land, adjacent to East Over, have been added, making even more of the rural landscape safe from future development.

Carr Family Bogs addition to East Over Reservation

The Carr Family Bogs, in Rochester and neighboring Marion, was once slated for purchase by the The Trustees, an option that ran out in 2010. The following year, they utility company NStar approached The Trustees about a land protection project somewhere in Plymouth County. For the utility company, it would fulfill a mitigation requirement related to a development project. For The Trustees, it was an opportunity to make sure that even more of the historically and ecologically important land in Rochester and Marion remains protected forever. Trustees staff members were able to facilitate a conversation between NStar and the landowner, with the two parties coming to terms on an agreement in February of 2012. Subsequently, The Trustees were granted 4.2 acres in Marion and 36.7 acres in Rochester, adding to the ever growing total acres of land under protection in the heavily developed southeastern region of the state.