Northeastern Area Forest Legacy Program (FLP)

Tract Record
Fourth Quarter FY 2005

Northeastern Area States 100 Percent Active in Forest Legacy
On August 5, 2005 , Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns approved both the Ohio and Missouri Forest Legacy Assessments of Need. With this approval, all 20 Northeastern Area States are now eligible to receive Forest Legacy Program (FLP) funds to protect important forest lands. The completion of an approved Assessment of Need is required for a State to participate in the USDA Forest Service Forest Legacy Program.

FY2006 Forest Legacy Appropriations Passed
President Bush signed the FY2006 Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act into law on August 2, 2005 . The law identifies 40 Forest Legacy projects in 32 States to protect important forest land from conversion to nonforest uses. Along with administration funds, the total FY2006 budget for FLP is $63,074,000. This total includes $60,074,000 of FY2006 appropriations and the use of $3,000,000 in prior year funds.

(Not So) Old (Looking) Man of Forest Legacy Retires
Terry Hoffman retired from the Forest Service’s Northeastern Area on September 30, 2005 , after 40 years of service to the agency. Terry has been involved with the FLP since 1992, when he was the Forest Supervisor on the Green Mountain and Finger Lakes National Forests. At that time, Federal acquisition was the only FLP option. The juxtaposition of Terry’s passion for land protection and a willing land acquisition team led the Green Mountain and Finger Lakes National Forests to be a pioneer in acquiring FLP conservation easements.

Cooksey Departs FLP Heading for Other Hills to Climb
Rick Cooksey spent his last day as the National FLP Program Manager on August 12, 2005 , being toasted and roasted by program partners. Rick is moving to the Legislative Affairs staff in Washington , DC , which means he will be following forest-related bills on Capitol Hill. Cooksey has been the National FLP Program Manager since May 2001, during which time he led the effort to establish a national competition for FLP projects.

Recently Completed FLP Projects

Iowa Initiative Connects State Forests to Federal Land
A 192-acre parcel in Allamakee County, Iowa, that borders both the Yellow River State Forest and Effigy Mounds National Monument was protected from conversion to nonforest uses with a Forest Legacy conservation easement on August 6, 2005. A partnership of the USDA Forest Service, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources–Forestry Bureau, and the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation worked with the landowners Mike and Randi Kluesner to develop a sustainable forestry conservation easement to manage the oak-hickory forests that help protect the Yellow River watershed. The northeastern Iowa property was purchased using $160,500 in Forest Legacy funds and a donation by the Kluesner family of $53,500.

Globally Unique Soils in Iowa Will Be Protected by a Unique Forest
The soil deposits of Iowa’s Loess Hills FLP project are so unique that they only occur in Iowa and China. In Harrison County, a 255-acre forest tract owned by Warren and Gail Gee was purchased in fee on September 27, 2005, to become part of the Little Sioux Unit of Loess Hills State Forest. This was a key acquisition for the forest because of its unique oak woodlands, bur oak savanna, and native tallgrass prairie. The purchase price included $131,510 from the FLP and $474,115 from the Iowa Resources Enhancement and Protection Program.

Thirteen Is a Lucky Number in New Hampshire Again
In rural northern New Hampshire, a 5,269-acre forest was conserved with a FLP conservation easement on August 10, 2005. The property, known as 13-Mile Woods II, is adjacent to the 2,754-acre 13-Mile Woods project protected in 1996. The property was acquired from Lyme Timber Company by the Trust for Public Land, who then sold a conservation easement to New Hampshire using $1,640,000 in FLP funds. The restricted property, valued at $2,410,000, will be acquired from the Trust for Public Land in the near future by the town of Errol to serve as the cost-share for the project. The property will become part of the Errol Town Forest.

Indiana Takes Forest Legacy by Storm
The winds of change were evident in Indiana on August 26, 2005, when the 1,351-acre Hurricane Hills tract was protected with a FLP conservation easement. The land is part of over 2,800 acres that had been owned by the Indianapolis Power and Light Company. When plans for a proposed power plant changed, the largest consolidated private forest landholding within an hour's drive of Indianapolis went up for sale. Indiana purchased 1,500 acres to add to Morgan-Monroe State Forest. The remaining adjoining acres were purchased by CCM Land, LLC at auction. The FLP provided $2,300,000 and the Indiana Heritage Trust contributed $300,000 toward purchasing a conservation easement on the Hurricane Hills tract from CCM Land, LLC.

Part III of a Forest Legacy Success in Indiana
The closing of the Indian Creek III tract on September 1, 2005, adds 108 acres to the protection of hardwood forests in the Indian Creek watershed, which started with the Indian Creek I Forest Legacy Project in 2000. The Forest Legacy Program contributed $60,000 for a conservation easement on the Jerry and Kimberly Waldridge property adjoining the Indian Creek I project. Indiana’s newest Forest Legacy property, located in the southwestern part of the State, protects over 0.1 mile of Indian Creek and the bordering forested slopes with outcroppings of limestone.

Vermont Victory for a State Forest and a State Wildlife Area
Five separate "inholdings" within Vermont's Victory State Forest and Victory State Wildlife Area totaling 514 acres were purchased by the State on September 30, 2005. These added parcels will serve to enable Vermont to harmonize management over the entire area. The Trust for Public Land purchased the land from former landowner International Paper Realty and sold it to Vermont for $160,000.