Additional land to be added to conservation easement along the St. Mary’s River

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — North Florida Land Trust has received a donation of two acres in Nassau County. The land was donated by the Eloise Bailey-Thompson Trust. It will increase the nonprofit land conservation organization’s holdings in the area.

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The land is right next to the 160-acre Basala-Chico conservation easement along the St. Mary’s River near the Florida-Georgia state line. That land was previously donated by the Bailey-Thompson family.

“It is now or never for land conservation, and we greatly appreciate the Bailey-Thompson family for their generous donation and for realizing the importance of protecting this land,” said Allison DeFoor, interim president of NFLT. “Not only did they donate the property, they also covered all the transaction costs and donated funds to help us with the long-term management of this new addition and the existing conservation easement. These lands provide so many environmental benefits including protecting the watershed that benefits everyone along the St. Mary’s River Basin.”

Read: North Florida Land Trust needs donors to help protect land in Mandarin

The two-acre Bussell Tract will be added to the Basala-Chico conservation easement which contains about five thousand feet of frontage on the St. Mary’s River.

The mostly unspoiled blackwater river forms a boundary between Florida and Georgia. The conservation easement contains important ecological features including a large floodplain lake. It is also an excellent example of a forest community which is an area for several plant species of special concern.

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Both properties provide ecosystem benefits in the area. It protects an oxbow lake that was formed when a bend in the river was cut off and isolated. In addition, it protects the watershed in the St. Mary’s River Basin.