SKANEATELES, NY (CortacaToday) – The Finger Lakes Land Trust (FLLT) is protecting a main tributary to Skaneateles Lake.
The Ithaca-based conservation group has acquired 101 acres of open space just outside the village “in an area under intense pressure for development.” It will become a permanent and publicly accessible nature preserve known as the Shotwell Brook Conservation Area. The property has more than 1,000 feet of frontage on the brook and more than 1,000 feet of frontage on U.S. Route 20.
It’s a key addition in protecting the City of Syracuse’s drinking water supply. The Shotwell Brook Conservation Area enters Skaneateles Lake near the water intake for the Salt City.
“This project uniquely brings together to important missions of the Finger Lakes Land Trust – to expand public access to nature’s beauty around Skaneateles Lake and to help preserve the exceptional water quality that serves as the water supply for Syracuse and the Central New York region,” said Land Trust Board Member Sean O’Keefe, a resident of Skaneateles. “Both are goals we’re pursuing to bring the community together in support of benefits to us all.”
FLLT will undertake ecological restoration efforts with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
A fundraising campaign has been launched to cover costs associated with the restoration, public access improvements, and funds for long-term management.
Contact FLLT Director of Development and Communications Dawn Cornell to make a contribution.
- (607)-275-9487
- dawncornell@fllt.org
