Our annual report is more than just a collection of facts and figures, or a list of names. It’s a celebration of you—the donors, volunteers, and partners who give so generously of their time and energy. It’s because of you that we are working with landowners across the county to protect their cherished family lands, now and for future generations.

The Harford Land Trust is a community organization. It’s your organization—driven by your generous contributions, your participation in our events, and your efforts to keep Harford County a wonderful place to live, work, and play. We sincerely thank you, and invite you to contact us anytime to share your ideas, suggestions, or goals for the future of the Trust.

Thank you to all of our 2018 supporters.

HLT_2018_Annual_Report_Online.pdf

HLT’s 2017—2022 Strategic Plan called for us to strategically pursue land preservation projects that meet our land preservation criteria. Of course, we cannot, and should not, protect “everything.” It is paramount that our land preservation efforts are sharply focused on the most critical and vulnerable resources to ensure our efforts have the greatest positive impact.

Thanks to a grant from the Chesapeake Bay Land and Water Initiative, a project of the Chesapeake Bay Funders Network and the Land Trust Alliance, we were able to try something new further this goal. In late 2017, HLT engaged the Chesapeake Conservancy’s Conservation Innovation Center to develop a Harford County strategic land preservation prioritization map based on HLT’s land preservation criteria.

Over many months, HLT staff worked with the Conservancy to identify data sets and assign weights that best reflected HLT’s criteria and evaluation process for prospective land preservation projects.

Each parcel larger than five acres in Harford County was assessed against over 20 datasets. The highest priority was assigned to three overarching criteria:

• ·Wildlife and biodiversity (e.g., ecologically sensitive areas, habitat)
• ·Productive farmland (e.g., soil quality)
• ·Water quality (e.g., Chesapeake Bay Critical Area, marshland and streams, steep slopes, floodplains, green infrastructure)

Have a look at HLT's 2018 Winter Newsletter. Learn more about our recent success preserving the Perryman Forest, our permanent protection of Monk's Creek Woods, our results from this year's Harvest Moon Dinner & Auction, an overview of our recent strategic land conservation mapping and much more.

HLT_2018_winter_FINAL_website.pdf

Perryman Forest preservation partners hold a commemorative sign which will soon be installed on the property. Left-to-right: Todd Beser (APG ACUB Program Manager), Harry Webster (Forest Greens-Perryman Community Association President), Billy Boniface (Harford County Director of Administration), Barry Glassman (Harford County Executive), Major General Randy S. Taylor (Senior Commander, APG), Ben Lloyd (President, HLT), Kristin Kirkwood (Executive Director, HLT), Peg Niland (Former Executive Director, HLT).   (Photo credit Ruben Pereida Photography).

The Harford Land Trust is pleased to announce that it has completed the purchase of a 32-acre property known as Perryman Forest at a cost of $935,000. The local land preservation nonprofit had pursued the Perryman-area property for twelve years due to its significant environmental value, proximity to the Bush River, and connectivity with other open space.