The Montgomery County Green Futures program is in its fourth year of offering a multifaceted approach to training and education for local municipal officials and their advisors. This dynamic series of workshops has reached over 800 people throughout the county, offering in-depth analyses of land conservation issues in a variety of venues. In creating an energizing and fun environment for the exchange of ideas, Green Futures provides local leaders with the open space tools to deliver what the citizens of Montgomery County want: enhanced quality of life through land conservation and greener communities.

Montgomery County Green Futures Achievement Awards

Do you know of a dynamic open space project or program in Montgomery County deserving of recognition? Then we want to hear from you! The committee for the Montgomery County Green Futures’ Achievement Awards is searching for a diverse selection of conservation and smart growth projects to honor at our upcoming awards event on October 27, 2009.

Nomination forms are due by July 10, 2009 and need to be mailed or emailed to Montgomery County Lands Trust, PO Box 300, Lederach, PA  19450. For more information, please contact Gwyn Rowland at growland@mclt.org or 215.513.0100.

Click here to download nomination form for Green Futures Achievement Award.

Click here for the 2009 Green Futures calendar.

Green Futures is generously supported by the William Penn Foundation and Montgomery County. Additional support comes from Exelon Nuclear – Limerick Generating Station. Collaborative partners include Natural Lands Trust, Montgomery County Planning Commission, and Partners for Land Preservation.

Montgomery County Lands Trust is working with land owners and local officials to identify effective ways to protect the Swamp Creek watershed – a 55.4 mile area in Western Montgomery County and Southeastern Berks. This link will take you to the extensive Swamp Creek Riparian Corridor Conservation Plan . MCLT’s new brochure, Protect and Preserve the Swamp Creek Greenway , provides compelling information, resources, and practical tips for caring for this valuable watershed. To obtain a free print copy, please make your request on our contact page .

One of the most effective ways we increase the pace of land conservation, is through federal and state tax incentives that help landowners choose conservation over development. Find out how some land owners donating conservation easements this year can benefit from the current federal tax incentive. Important note: Unless Congress acts, the enhanced federal tax deduction for conservation easement donations will expire December 31, 2009! Now more than ever, we need your help spreading the word to landowners and federal legislators to make this powerful conservation tool permanent. Find out more about this issue through information provided by the Land Trust Alliance.

Learn about important natural resources and key conservation landscapes identified in our county through Montgomery County Planning Commission’s Natural Areas Inventory study
completed in 2007. To gain an overview of the study, you can view a narrated power point presentation.

Interested in preserving a piece of your land? The Trust can help you ensure that your land is protected, now and in the future. The Trust can help you design a conservation easement that fulfills your wishes for the future of your land. If the conservation easement is donated to the Trust, the Trust will monitor your easement yearly and ensure that the land remains as you wish. For more information, see our Landowner Conservation Options brochure, and our Conservation Easement Fact Sheet.

Don’t write off farming in Montgomery County just yet. Check out these impressive farm figures collected from a recent growing season.

Montgomery County Lands Trust thanks the generous corporations, municipalities, and foundations in our region who provided valuable support in 2008.

Did you know Pennsylvania’s Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) has a program called iConservePA aimed at getting people more active in conservation in their homes, backyards, and workplaces? Learn more about this program at www.iConservePA.org.

The recharged Montgomery County Open Space program – Green Fields/Green Towns has energized planning in Montgomery County communities. This ten-year, $150 million program was approved by the Montgomery County citizens in November 2003. The Green Fields/Green Towns Program is made up of three basic components: municipal grants ($67 million), private organization grants ($8 million), and county open space expenditures ($75 million).

The program established an allocation of funding for each municipality in Montgomery County based on population. The initial funding round commenced on April 1, 2004, and will now end on April 1, 2009. All grant applications received before April 1, 2009, will be reviewed under Round I guidelines. For further information, contact Devan Stewart at 610.278.3743. Click here to see how your municipality has participated in Green Field/Green Towns. All 62 of Montgomery County’s municipalities have approved open space plans formally adopted by the Open Space Board.

• New for 2009! Protect and Preserve the Swamp Creek Greenway provides compelling information, resources, and a call to action for the valuable Swamp Creek watershed – a 55.4 square-mile area of special focus for Montgomery County Lands Trust in Western Montgomery County and Southeastern Berks County.
• Buy the Best, Zone the Rest: Building a Green Future presents an
  overview of conservation choices available to municipalities, nonprofits
  and the citizens of Montgomery County.
• Landowner Conservation Options incorporates stories from landowners working with us to preserve their land and outlines the assortment of preservation techniques available to any landowner newly considering preservation.
• Open Space Success Stories is a 36-page booklet highlighting the
  wide array of innovative projects emerging from Montgomery County’s
  first open space program.

To obtain a free print copy of any of these booklets, please make your request on our contact page. And while you’re at it, become a member. Joining is a great way to make a difference.

Montgomery County Lands Trust partners with groups throughout Southeastern Pennsylvania such as GreenSpace Alliance to implement strategies that keep our region vibrant, encourage smart growth, and protect our valuable natural assets. Click here to access the Regional Open Space Priorities Report produced by the
Green Space Alliance of Southeastern Pennsylvania. To see conservation plans for some of the important resources in Montgomery County, visit our Working Together page.