Project Goal: To conserve wildlife habitat through the formal protection and stewardship of old growth forests on private lands, based on a successful landowner education and stewardship program.

Objectives:

• Contact and educate landowners of Nova Scotia's priority old and unique forests sites on private lands to encourage protection of the sites.



• Create detailed forest conservation proposals for major corporate landowners of priority forest conservation sites.



• To provide education on the role of old and unique forests and the importance of forest conservation for woodlot owners, managers and government agents involved in forestry and wildlife management and for the general public.



• To formally protect priority old and unique forest sites through acquisition, conservation easement, provincial or federal designation or stewardship agreement.

Work Plan for 2^nd Half of Year 1

• Landowner contact and education: contact landowners by mail, phone, arrange visits, meet with landowners and/or visit property; respond to inquiries, send information packages, preliminary assessment of sites.



• Corporate proposals: work on corporate proposals by communicating with company personnel, researching potential sites through photos, maps and discussions, prioritize sites and write reports.



• Public Education: distribute forest factsheets and provide information at displays and events, provide guided walk for public, conduct presentations for woodlot owners and other groups.



• Secure formal protection: continue negotiations with landowners who have committed to easements, gather documentation through visiting sites, complete baseline maps and reports, photo documentation, develop stewardship plans, work on legal and tax issues related to securement; identify new sites for securement.

Work Completed

• Landowner Contact and Education

• Researched ownership and property boundaries of sites in Cape Breton



• Maps and air photos obtained for approximately 40 sites



• Initial contact letter sent to 28 landowners at 9 sites: visits and meetings in July, August, September



• Presentation made to landowner and family: Stewardship Agreement certificate



• Ongoing communications with landowner in Cape Breton re Stewardship Agreement



• Distribution of Land Stewards Newsletter to previously contacted landowners, includes description of Big Tree contest and sponsor logos



• Responded to seven inquiries: meeting and site visit with landowner in Margaree about options for land conservation, meeting with landowner from Mabou area re: potential conservation project, information packages sent to two landowners requesting information on land conservation, site visits and meetings with two landowners interested in options for conservation in Annapolis and Cumberland counties, ongoing communication with landowner and site visit, MacKinnon's Harbour, Cape Breton.



• Meeting with Board of Directors, St. Mary's River Association re options for conservation and working together



• Visited two forest sites on St. Mary's River

• Two meetings with a forestry company re priorities for conservation on their properties; reviewed properties to determine priorities.



• Visited two forest sites owned by a forestry company; obtained maps and air photos for two more sites



• Confirmed a forestry company does not own floodplain next to potential easement on St. Mary's River



• Continued research of forest sites for 2^nd corporate owner



• A Municipality interested in conservation options for property

• Display and handouts at Federation of NS Naturalists conference (May), Bowater Open House (July)



• Presentations at Wentworth Community Development Council meeting (May), St. Mary's River Association AGM (May), and planned for North Mountain Old Forest Society (July 30)



• Presentation on the Forest Legacy project and Old Forest ecology (Bob Bancroft) at NS Nature Trust AGM (April)



• Reprinting of Old Forest Factsheets and Landowner Options Booklet with NS Habitat Conservation Fund acknowledged



• Panuke Lake Old Forest walk (July 14) advertised through local newspapers, Nature Trust Newsletter, Field Naturalist's newsletters, Park are for People brochures and posters



• Nature Trust advertisement in Daily News insert (Trees Inside and Out) distributed to all school boards in province and to newspaper subscribers and readers; reprint of Trees Inside and Out in Daily News for Forestry Week



• Volunteer Webmaster redesigned project page for NSNT website with sponsor logos



• Staff attended planning session of Southwest Nova Biosphere Reserve Association in Shelburne (April) and AGM in Caledonia (June)

• Initial site assessment done for potential donation in Cape Breton



• Meeting held with owner of property on St. Mary's River to finalize easement draft, completion of baseline report and map, and photorecords documentation, confirmation of property boundaries



• Nearing completion of easements for Gold River Lake, Lunenburg/Kings Counties (600 acres) and Meander River, Hants County (20 acres) - baseline maps, reports, photorecords complete; working through tax and legal documentation and stewardship plans

• Meeting and presentation planned for managers of a Municipality (September 2002)



• One landowner in Kings County committed to Stewardship Agreement for 150 acre property



• Final stages of easement negotiations for 150 acre property containing forest and floodplain along St. Mary's River, Guysborough County. Plans for large event upon signing of easement, continued work with St. Mary's River Association on larger project to encourage more landowners to protect properties



• Nearing completion of easements for Gold River Lake, Lunenburg/Kings Counties (600 acres) and Meander River, Hants County (20 acres) - baseline maps, reports, photorecords complete; working through tax and legal documentation and stewardship plans



• Potential conservation sites identified through landowner and site visits

Problems/Concerns

• Easement negotiations take longer than expected - a lot of paperwork involved, waiting on landowners to decide on wishes, consult with lawyers, etc.



• Ecogift process (federal tax benefit for landowner) includes appraisal and review board which has been questioning appraised values, requesting re-appraisal



• American landowners are often in Nova Scotia only one time or less per year, making meetings difficult and moving forward with conservation a slower process

Financial Summary (Jan. 1 - June 30, 2002)

Toby Rowe
Nova Scotia Nature Trust

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