WLT permanently preserves regionally and locally prioritized lands in urban, suburban and rural communities throughout its service territory of Westchester County and eastern Putnam County. Its land preservation efforts serve the public benefit by protecting drinking water, air quality, natural wildlife habitats, passive recreation opportunities, agricultural lands and urban green spaces, as well as contributing to natural carbon sequestration efforts that combat climate change. Since its founding in 1988 WLT has preserved nearly 9,000 acres of open space, including 32 publicly accessible nature preserves that it owns and manages, and over 75 miles of walking trails in 23 communities. Land conservation projects have been completed on properties ranging from ¼ acre to over 600 acres. In 2020 WLT preserved an additional 182 acres across 5 projects, and continued to move many other projects, totaling over 500 acres, closer to completion. In 2020, more than 45,000 visits were made to WLT’s preserves.  In addition to partnering with private landowners, WLT partners with the State of New York, Westchester and Putnam County, and local municipal governments to acquire and preserve lands that have been prioritized for preservation.

WLT is committed to community education about the protection of natural resources, wildlife habitats and sustainable agriculture. WLT accomplished this through a regular preserve hike series, habitat restoration projects at WLT preserves, sustainable agriculture programming and the launch of a traveling natural history exhibit called the Pollinator Pop-Up.  WLT collaborates with dozens of organizations including  Atmosphere Academy, Bionutrient Food Association, the Community Center for Northern Westchester (CCNW), Farmland for a New Generation / American Farmland Trust, Hudson to Housatonic Regional Conservation Partnership, Pace University, Partnership for Regional Invasive Species Management,  Pollinator Pathway Northeast, and Outdoor Afro.  

WLT has conducted food justice programming for many years. WLT’s Sugar Hill Farm is the site of a half-acre organic garden, where vegetables are grown for distribution to CCNW. In its 9 years of operation, Sugar Hill Farm has produced 70,000 servings of fresh produce for local families in need. In 2020 volunteers donated nearly 500 hours of time to WLT’s food pantry farm and nearly half of all volunteers were under the age of 18. WLT staff provide technical assistance to farmland owners and farmers seeking land, and commissioned an urban agriculture feasibility study to guide its future work in urban conservation projects.

WLT’s protected lands are home to more than 1,300 species of native plants and animals. Land stewardship is an important component of WLT’s mission. WLT regularly conducts land management and habitat restoration projects on publicly accessible lands that it owns or holds conservation easements on.  In 2020 WLT staff and volunteers removed more than 30,000 invasive plants and cleared 115 storm-damaged trees. This work was conducted at these WLT preserves: Westchester Wilderness Walk/Zofnass Family Preserve, Leon Levy Preserve, Frederick P. Rose Preserve, Otter Creek Preserve, Pine Croft Meadow Preserve and Hunter Brook Preserve.  Volunteers support all aspects of WLT’s field work and in 2020 donated more than 400 hours of service to plant native species and enhance trail systems.

Contact Westchester Land Trust

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Westchester Land Trust is not employed by or affiliated with the Land Conservation Assistance Network, and the Network does not certify or guarantee their services. The reader must perform their own due diligence and use their own judgment in the selection of any professional.

Listed in:

• Land Trusts
• Sustainable Ag / Community Supported Agriculture
• Habitat Management Programs
• Forest Health
• Working Lands for Wildlife Programs

Contact Westchester Land Trust

Kara Whelan
President
403 Harris Road
Bedford Hills, New York  10507
Phone: (914) 234-6992
 Email Westchester Land Trust
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Service Area

Services provided in:

• Westchester County, New York

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