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When working landscapes in farming and forestry thrive, our communities benefit in many ways. Pure Catskills farms are located in the region that protects clean drinking water for 9 million New Yorkers. These farms grow and harvest crops as part of a world-renowned innovative partnership focusing on healthy, working farmland and the water protection practices it takes to keep streams and reservoirs safe.

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Watershed Agricultural Council uses its Conservation Easement Program to help landowners keep their land within a working context. Protecting farmland, clean water and a way of life – these are the ultimate goals of the Conservation Easement Stewardship Fund. Through conservation easements, the Council – in partnership with the New York City Department of Environmental Protection – conserves farm and forest lands as part of a long-term strategy to insure that the watershed landscape remains green and protective of water quality. Committed to supporting farming and forestry through land conservation, the Council will use this fund to defray future easement program costs and to fund economic initiatives through Pure Catskills.

One Drop, Many Ripples

Just as one drop creates many ripples, your donation has far-reaching effects. Watershed communities benefit from conservation easements that set aside fertile land for food production. City residents benefit also, as conservation easements assure that sprawl will not degrade the Catskill landscape or their drinking water supply. Your donation to the Fund benefits the inhabitants of, and visitors to, the Catskills region by:

  • Protecting regional public health through assisting with maintaining good water quality,
  • Preserving the Catskills’ rural character that residents and visitors appreciate, and
  • Fueling the local economy through farm and forest enterprises based on our most precious assets – clean water and working landscapes.

Our goal is to establish a $20 million endowment by 2034 with the help of NYC DEP and you. Drop in — join us today in stewarding working landscapes protecting our watershed, foodshed and viewshed.

A copy of the Watershed Agricultural Council's latest annual report may be obtained, upon request, from the organization or from the New York State Attorney General's Charities Bureau, Attn: FOIL Officer, 120 Broadway, New York, NY 10271.

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