Land Conservancy of Adams County Earns National Recognition

(8/1) Accreditation Awarded by the Land Trust Accreditation Commission

After an extensive evaluation, the Land Conservancy of Adams County has been awarded accreditation by the Land Trust Accreditation Commission. The Land Conservancy is one of 230 land trusts from across the country that has been awarded accreditation since the fall of 2008.

"The Land Conservancy’s accredited status demonstrates our commitment to permanent land conservation," says Norma Calhoun, Land Conservancy president. "Our organization is stronger today having gone through the rigorous accreditation program."

Each accredited land trust submitted extensive documentation and underwent a thorough review. "Through accreditation, land trusts conduct important planning and make their operations more efficient and strategic," said Tammara Van Ryn, executive director of the Land Trust Accreditation Commission. "Accredited organizations have engaged and trained citizen conservation leaders and improved systems for ensuring that their conservation work is permanent."

The Land Conservancy of Adams County is now able to display a seal of accreditation indicating to the public that it meets national standards for excellence, upholds the public trust and ensures that conservation efforts are permanent. The seal is a mark of distinction in land conservation.

"Land trusts are gaining higher profiles with their work on behalf of citizens, and the seal of accreditation from the Land Trust Accreditation Commission is a way to prove to their communities that land trusts are worthy of the significant public and private investment in land conservation," noted Land Trust Alliance President Rand Wentworth.

The Land Conservancy of Adams County is a tax-exempt charitable organization, founded in 1995 by private citizens with support from the Adams County Commissioners. The Land Conservancy’s mission is to preserve the rural lands and character of Adams County, PA. This goal is accomplished primarily by working with landowners to place conservation easements on productive agricultural land and areas of scenic, natural, geological, biological, or historical importance. Priorities include properties that protect important water resources. The Land Conservancy currently holds 124 easements which restrict development on 8,111 acres.

Land is America’s most important and valuable resource. Conserving land helps ensure clean air and drinking water, food security, scenic landscapes and views, recreational places, and habitat for the diversity of life on earth. Across the country, local citizens and communities have come together to form land trusts to save the places they love. Community leaders in land trusts throughout the country have worked with willing landowners to save over 47 million acres of farms, forests, parks and places people care about. Strong, well-managed land trusts provide local communities with effective champions and caretakers of their critical land resources, and safeguard the land through the generations.

Calhoun concluded: "Achieving accredited status proves that the Land Conservancy is a strong, effective organization that is worthy of the individual and public support it has received. This recognition inspires the current officers and directors to continue striving for excellence in everything we do."