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New Composting Hub at the MacDonald Property
Composting’s value in ameliorating climate change impacts and its public popularity couldn’t be more evident. But at the same time, composting programs’ budgets are being cut in New York City and Long Island alike. At a time when New York City’s community composting program cuts may cause layoffs and disruption of existing services which could reduce waste processing capacity by as much as 25% (https://www.wastedive.com/news/dsny-community-compost-budget-cuts-big-reuse-les-ecology-center-compost-power-nyc/700572/), the need for education about the benefits and how-tos of composting is greater than ever. And little is being done in our community; it is time for us to pick up the reins. As a first step in what we hope will become a larger initiative, the Land Alliance jumped in and constructed three compost bins at our MacDonald property in Matinecock. The compost system will allow processing of vegetation debris on site. Grass clippings, leaves and other vegetation debris from the property will be contained, turned and moved among containers by volunteer and an experienced landscape contractor maintaining the property. Over time we plan to add material from other properties. In addition, we are conducting a series of educational workshops led by local experts and educators on composting at home, food waste and soil analysis and benefits through composting. Community members will learn to understand the value of this practice to enhancing natural communities, reducing waste and minimizing soil erosion. This new program was made possible through a grant from the New York State Conservation Partnership Program (NYSCPP) administered by the Land Trust Alliance. Match funding from National Grid, alongside the NYSCPP support, is allowing us to upgrade irrigation, set up tables and benches at the property and develop planting areas that will include a blueberry enclosure, fruit trees, a pollinator corner and a small meadow on which the compost will be used. Interpretive signage and deer fencing will round out our project. Composting helps complete the nutrient cycle by recycling plant material and returning nutrients to the soil onsite. MacDonald’s habitat value will be enhanced in an area of intense development pressure. It will welcome a community of diverse economic and cultural backgrounds to learn about composting and its support of our native plant and local wildlife that depend on them.
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Acquisition of a Historic Property Adjoining Red Cote Preserve
In June, the Land Alliance purchased a one-year option agreement from the Pulling family. The agreement allows the Land Alliance time to raise the $1.52M necessary to purchase 4.5 acres of land adjacent to the Red Cote Preserve in Oyster Bay Cove. This land features a beautiful scenic vista. It includes an additional trail, a picturesque colonial garden and majestic centuries-old trees. Located in the New York State designated Special Groundwater Protection Area and within the Route 25A Heritage Area, the land will be a wonderful addition to the Red Cote Preserve. The 30-acre Red Cote Preserve is comprised of land purchased from the Pulling, Cutting and Schwab families. It was created in the early 2000’s through proceeds from the Nassau County Environmental Bond Program. This much-loved community preserve features a peaceful woodland trail, sentinel red cedar trees in the meadow and native wildflowers butterfly weed blooming in summer and goldenrod in fall are particularly popular with preserve visitors and pollinators alike). Red Cote is managed by the Land Alliance. The land under the option agreement has been owned by Pulling family members for more than 100 years. In the early 1920s, R.C. Leffingwell rented a house and horse stables on the North Shore so that he, his wife and daughter Lucy could spend weekends out of the city and enjoy horseback riding. When the rental terminated in 1924, he purchased a farmhouse, stables and surrounding pastures and gardens at 33 Yellow Cote Road and named the property Red Cote. When adjacent properties came up for sale, he often purchased them as well. For example, he bought the cottage just north of the Red Cote field on Yellow Cote Road. It was occupied for many years by members of the Leffingwell/Pulling family and is now owned by neighbors. In 1927 he bought a house at 34 Yellow Cote Road from Willis Wood so the soon-to-be-married (to Edward Pulling) Lucy and her husband would have their own home on the property. Years later, when Edward Pulling retired from Millbrook School, he and Lucy moved back to the property. They lived the rest of their lives in the main house at Red Cote. 16 acres of the southwest portion of the property were sold in 2006 to Nassau County and are now part of the Red Cote Preserve. Protecting historic places like Red Cote Preserve helps us maintain a sense of continuity and connection to the past. It also fosters a sense of community and pride in the place where we live. The Land Alliance is grateful to the Pulling family for its commitment to preserving the stories and the places that define the character of our north shore community.
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Saunders Woods – A Generous Gift to Our Community
The Land Alliance was thrilled to add Saunders Woods to our ever-growing list of preserves in 2023. This generous land donation was made by the Saunders family, long time Matinecock residents and proponents of land conservation. When the Saunders first approached the Land Alliance about donating the property we knew this would be a big conservation win for the community. Located in the Village of Matinecock, Saunders Woods is comprised of 12 acres of vacant, forested land quietly set back from Piping Rock Road. The property holds many important conservation values. High on the list is the property’s location within the Kaintuck Brook watershed, one of Long Island’s most biodiverse and ecologically valuable areas. Kaintuck Brook drains into Mill Neck Creek and subsequently the Long Island Sound. Protecting the property also preserves habitat for many native flora and fauna including red oak, tulip tree, American holly, spice bush, Canada mayflower, Jack-in-the-pulpit, Solomon’s seal, woodpeckers and red fox. The new preserve provides connectivity to 15 acres of preserved woodland and meadows owned by the North Shore Wildlife Sanctuary, which connects to the back fields at Friends Academy. Over the winter, the Land Alliance surveyed the property to establish clear boundary lines so encroachment issues could be identified and resolved. This summer Land Alliance staff will design and build a trail system. In the not-too-distant future, we hope to open those new trails to the public. We are grateful to the Saunders family for trusting that their conservation legacy would be upheld under Land Alliance ownership. In many ways the donation is a quiet tribute to Thomas A. Saunders III, who passed away in 2022. Mr. Saunders was raised in Virginia and had great admiration for Thomas Jefferson and his affinity for nature. In fact, one of Mr. Saunders’ favorite Jefferson quotes was “No occupation is so delightful to me as the culture of the earth, and no culture comparable to that of the garden.”
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New York State Open Space Plan Update
Working alongside the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (OPRHP), the Land Alliance spearheaded the Nassau County arm of the Region 1 New York State Open Space Committee. We convened a series of meetings where partner organizations and local government officials worked together to develop countywide recommendations for the Plan’s update. Using Geographic Information Systems (GIS), the Land Alliance reviewed the projects included in the 2016 Open Space Plan to identify areas that might have been overlooked in the last plan or have become eligible due to a changing environment. Three new priority projects areas were proposed. Those new project areas included recreational lands such as golf courses (which could become future forests, farms or grassland), green infrastructure (such as wetlands and forests) and coastal areas (to mitigate and abate the harmful impacts of climate change). Early indications suggest that these recommendations have been accepted by the DEC. Results of statewide efforts have been forwarded to DEC and OPRHP in Albany for review with the goal of releasing an updated Plan in 2025. Due to the dense development that already occurs on Long Island, the Nassau County Committee also proposed that the definition of open space be expanded to encompass “un-development” or “reclamation” as a strategy for creating new open spaces. The Open Space Conservation Plan (OSCP) is a comprehensive statewide plan that describes current open space conservation goals, actions, tools, resources and programs administered by state and federal agencies and conservation nonprofits. Since 1992, the OSCP has served as the blueprint for the State’s Open Space Program, guiding the investment of land protection funds from the Environmental Protection Fund. As required by law, the Plan is updated periodically, relying heavily on the work of the nine Regional Advisory Committees. Partner Organizations Many thanks to our partner organizations whose contributions added greatly to the quality of the final product. Those organizations were: City of Long Beach , Coalition to Save Hempstead Harbor, Friends of the Bay, Glen Cove CDA, Hempstead Harbor Protection Committee, Nassau County Department of Public Works, Nassau County Soil and Water Conservation District, OPRHP, Save the Sound, Town of Oyster Bay
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Williams Ridge Preserve Update
We are off to a good start this spring at Lattingtown’s 4.5-acre Williams Ridge Preserve. We made irrigation upgrades and installed native shrubs, sedges, warm-season native grasses and wildflowers along the pond edge and across the adjoining upland. Also, a meadow was revamped and seeded just after Thanksgiving. We are overhauling the formal garden area next to the meadow as a demonstration planting area of native wildflowers and grasses that will help visitors learn about deer-resistant plants and converting some lawn areas to wildlife-friendly spaces. We were delighted to witness the expansion of spring ephemeral trout lily alongside the creek this spring and multiple snapping turtles, largemouth bass and a muskrat in the pond. A house wren was observed nesting in a log that had fallen into the water, showing what value dead trees can provide wildlife. Our volunteers continue their vine removal, weeding of planting areas, maintenance of the stone staircase and conducting wildlife survey. We continue to be challenged by an emerging invasive aquatic species called parrot feather (Myriophyllum aquaticum) at the pond; native to South America, it can form dense mats, reducing biodiversity. It is something to be on the lookout for in calm waterbodies. Those of you who have not yet visited Williams Ridge are in for a treat when you do go! The location of the preserve entrance may require some explanation, so please contact us here at the office at 516-922-1028 so we can direct you. This habitat restoration is supported by funding from the New York State Conservation Partnership Program (NYSCPP) and New York’s Environmental Protection Fund. The NYSCPP is administered by the Land Trust Alliance, in coordination with the state Department of Environmental Conservation. We remain grateful to Mary and Tim Williams for their generous donation of this charming respite from our hectic life pace and, more and more, a haven for wildlife.
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