Governor Martin O’Malley and the Maryland Environment Trust today announced preservation of Bear Creek Ranch, a 745-acre forested property in Garrett County.
Located off route 219, just north of Deep Creek Lake and west of Savage River State Forest, the property spans two ridge tops in the South Branch and protects the headwaters of Bear Creek.
“The Maryland Environmental Trust has been anxiously awaiting the completion of the Bear Creek Ranch easement acquisition, a multi-year collaborative effort between MET, the Allegheny Highlands Conservancy and Maryland Department of Natural Resources,” said MET Executive Director Elizabeth Buxton. “Preservation of Bear Creek Ranch offers an impressive array of environmental benefits, including protecting pristine woodlands, habitat for more than a dozen rare, threatened and endangered species, and keeping Bear Creek healthy and clean. The conservation easement on the ranch includes special provisions that protect native biodiversity, enhance water quality, control harmful invasive and exotic species, and minimize forest fragmentation.”
Today, the Board of Public Works approved $860,000 of state-side Program Open Space funding to purchase a conservation easement that permanently protects the 745-acre forest from development.
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