Programs and Activities
Criteria for Creating Conservation Areas
The Allegheny Land Trust acquires and protects land that provides the greatest number public benefits. Each property possesses unique features such as wildlife habitat, storm and floodwater management and scenic qualities. ALT identifies and protect lands that have all three criteria so the public derives the greatest public benefit from the limited dollars available for land protection. ALT's new strategic plan supports the ALT Greenprint – A Regional Conservation Agenda™ that prioritizes conservation for the public good.
After studies, public surveys, brainstorming sessions and preliminary conclusions, Allegheny Land Trust finds its bearings for the future in its developing conservation agenda, ALT Greenprint. Read about the agenda, study, and survey results and important conclusions drawn by Board members at a recent retreat in this downloadable PDF document.
The ALT Greenprint document is also part of the current issue of VISTAS, the Allegheny Land Trust newsletter. Each issue of VISTAS covers a wide variety of Trust news and land conservation topics. If you are not on our mailing list and would like to receive a copy, please call Sue at the Trust, 412-741-2750, or send an e-mail to admin@alleghenylandtrust.org. You may also download a copy from the VISTAS archive.
Conserving Farms and Scenic Areas with Conservation Easements
Our executive director serves on the Allegheny County Farmland Preservation Board which administers the Pennsylvania Farmland Preservation Program. To date, more than 1,500 acres of farmland has been conserved through this program.
Building Trails
Occasionally, in cooperation with community groups, ALT builds and maintains hiking trails at its wildlife preserves to enable people of all ages and backgrounds to learn about the wild and enjoy a sense of wilderness close to home.
On behalf of other trail groups, ALT raises and administers money from the Allegheny Regional Asset District for rail-trail acquisition and development. As a result, the Montour, Steel Heritage, Three Rivers Heritage, Harmony, Panhandle and Youghiogheny River Trails have received more than $1 million for trail expansion and improvement over the last several years.
Providing Stewardship
When ALT acquires land or a conservation easement, it commits to providing continual stewardship. For land acquisitions, ALT develops management policies in accordance with ecological principles and community needs. ALT works with volunteers to plant trees in deforested areas, remove non-native species, prevent dumping, and much more. For conservation easements, ALT regularly monitors properties to ensure that the easement’s restrictions are being respected. Give us a call if you’d like to help out.
Helping Communities and Landowners
ALT works to protect local open space that provides the most benefit to communities. Examples: partnering with a municipal government to create a park, protecting floodplains and wetlands that help to retain storm and floodwaters; steep wooded slopes that are vulnerable to landslides if disturbed; and scenic vistas that create our region’s unique natural character.