GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) - A conservation organization said it protected 2,176 acres of private and public farmlands, forests and greenspace last year in ten different counties across the Upstate.
The Greenville News reported Saturday that the group called Upstate Forever said in a news release that the conservation projects included efforts in Kings Mountain Preserve in Cherokee County, a 241-acre farm in Laurens County and a 25-acre property in Oconee County.
“We are immensely proud of the land protection successes our team accomplished in 2020 despite significant challenges the ongoing pandemic created,” said Scott Park, Glenn Hilliard Director of Land Conservation for Upstate Forever, according to the newspaper. Park said the group has already completed several additional projects this year.
The organization works with landowners to protect land through contracts that allow traditional types of land uses such as farming or grazing or hunting but restrict certain land uses such as residential subdivisions or industrial development. The protections are permanent and stay with the land as its sold or passed down through generations.
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