NWLT's Annual Meeting to be held May 25th in Price County

The Northwoods Land Trust's 12th Annual Meeting will be held in Price County starting with a field tour of the first Price County land protection agreement granted by Sue Kartman and Cindy Walters (see below).  The meeting and field tour will be held on Saturday, May 25th starting at 10:00 a.m.  Following the field tour, lunch will be provided at noon at the Kountry Kafe in Fifield.  The Annual Meeting will be conducted after lunch with a virtual tour of NWLT's 2012-2013 conservation projects.  For more information and directions to the sites, see page 7 of the May 2013 Newsletter.

The Northwoods Land Trust recently accepted its first land protection agreement, or conservation easement, in Price County. Landowners Sue Kartman and Cindy Walters permanently protected about 319 acres of land in the town of Fifield. 

According to land trust Executive Director Bryan Pierce, the protected property has diverse conservation values.  The land features almost a mile of shared boundary with the Chequamegon National Forest, and is located close to Price County Forest land, providing contiguous habitat and a natural corridor for the movement of wildlife.  Pierce noted that the property also includes about 2,000 feet of natural stream corridor on Sailor Creek, a series of small spring ponds that have been used for rearing trout, and about 3.5 acres of ponds created as waterfowl habitat. 

For the full story, see the Winter 2012-13 Newsletter!  In addition to this Price County project, the Northwoods Land Trust now holds conservation easements on over 60 private properties in Vilas, Oneida, Iron and Florence Counties.  These agreements provide lasting protection to over 8,900 acres and 42 miles of natural lake and river shorelines.

"Fiscal Cliff" deal extends enhanced federal income tax benefits for conservation easement donations

When Congress passed the fiscal cliff deal at the beginning of 2013, legislators renewed the enhanced income tax deduction for conservation easements through 2013, and also retroactive to the beginning of 2012.  Check out the "What's Happening" page for more information.

The Northwoods Land Trust (NWLT) is pleased to announce it is applying for national land trust accreditation.  The land trust accreditation program recognizes land conservation organizations that meet national quality standards for protecting important natural places and working lands forever. The Land Trust Accreditation Commission, an independent program of the national Land Trust Alliance, conducts an extensive review of each applicant’s policies and programs.

The review process is well underway, with our application submitted in August, 2012, and a review teleconference with the Commission completed in February, 2013.  The final decision isn't expected until August of 2013.

For over 10 years, the Northwoods Land Trust has worked with private landowners who want to voluntarily conserve their natural shorelands, woodlands, wetlands and wildlife habitat.  NWLT works in areas of Vilas, Oneida, Forest, Florence, Iron, Price and Langlade Counties in northern Wisconsin.  Since it formed in 2001, the land trust has helped landowners protect over 8,500 acres of land and over 40 miles of lake and river shorelines, as public benefits for both the present and future generations.

The Northwoods Land Trust board and staff are committed to excellence.  NWLT is working toward national land trust accreditation as one more step in an on-going process to ensure the organization is able to meet its perpetual conservation stewardship responsibilities on into the future. 

The Northwoods Land Trust must comply with national quality standards. These standards address the ethical and technical operation of a land trust. For the full list of standards see www.landtrustaccreditation.org/getting-accredited/indicator-practices.

To learn more about the accreditation program, visit www.landtrustaccreditation.org or contact Executive Director Bryan Pierce at (715) 479-2490 or nwlt@northwoodslandtrust.org.

NWLT Celebrates the Dedication of the Winter Park Pines Nature Preserve

On December 29th at 11 a.m. at the Minocqua Winter Park Chalet, the Northwoods Land Trust and Lakeland Ski Touring Foundation celebrated the dedication of our newest land protection project - the 3,195-acre Winter Park Pines Nature Preserve!  This is the largest conservation easement donation ever to a Wisconsin land trust, and protects 43 kilometers of the core of Minocqua Winter Park's outstanding public cross-country ski and snowshoe trail system. 

Check out the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel front page cover story from Saturday, December 17th and additional information in What's Happening.  Our March 2012 newsletter also focuses on the Winter Park project.     

Voluntary Land Conservation

Voluntary Conservation by Private Landowners can:
  - Preserve Natural Shorelands
  - Protect Critical Natural Areas
  - Promote Sustainable Forest Management
  - Conserve Natural Habitat
  - Enhance Recreational Opportunities
  - Provide for Lasting Enjoyment by Future Generations

NWLT encourages and accepts conservation easements on property with natural or scenic resource values.  After a voluntary land protection agreement (conservation easement) is granted, the land trust provides long-term stewardship of the protected land so the resource values are preserved in accordance with the landowner's wishes.

NWLT covers areas of Vilas, Oneida, Forest, Florence, Iron and Price Counties, along with northern Langlade County, in north central Wisconsin.  This is the heart of Wisconsin's northwoods lake country and includes one of the highest concentrations of inland freshwater lakes in the world.  This northwoods region, however, is also being developed at one of the fastest rates in the state.  The time is critical to encourage private landowners interested in leaving a lasting legacy of unspoiled land, forest, water and wildlife. 

Now more than ever, we need your participation to help protect our beautiful northwoods.

Please contact us to receive a FREE copy of "For The Love of the Land...  A Landowner's Conservation Guide to Protecting Your Northwoods Property" at Northwoods Land Trust, P.O. Box 321, Eagle River, WI 54521-0321, (715) 479-2490, or nwlt@northwoodslandtrust.org. 

(Please note:  due to sensitive spam filters on our email host server, please give us a call if you've emailed a question and have not heard back from us within a week or so.)

FOR SALE - 100-foot Lot on Pickerel Lake FOR SALE by NWLT!  Donation and sale of this lake lot will support NWLT's northwoods conservation efforts.