OUR MISSION: To protect and conserve our area’s natural resources.
THE VISION: A community living and growing in harmony with our natural heritage.
Welcome to the Pacolet Area Conservancy website!
Through the varied conservation tools at its disposal, PAC has helped protect nearly 8,400 acres of our area’s valuable natural resources. PAC holds conservation easements on 52 protected properties. PAC owns 25 properties. PAC is responsible for monitoring 62 easements annually, 8 of which are owned by the state of North Carolina and one which is held by The Nature Conservancy. PAC is responsible for monitoring a total of 4,531.43 acres annually to make certain that the terms of the conservation agreements are upheld.
PAC Brings the Goats Back to Tryon!
The Pacolet Area Conservancy, in partnership with the Town of Tryon and the North Carolina Cooperative Extension, has received a grant from the Polk County Community Foundation through their Kudzu Eradication Initiative. This grant will be used to fund the use of goats to eradicate Kudzu from thie 2-acre Town of Tryon lot near IGA. These goats will be working on the site twice a year, for three consecutive years.
Click here to see the channel 7 news coverage.
Click here to read the TDB article.
Thanks to TJ’s restaurant for use of an outlet for the fence, to the Sign Shop for quick work on the sign, to John Vining of the NC Cooperative Extension for Polk Co., to Ron and Cheryl Searcy of Wells Farms, to the Town of Tryon, to Re/Max for providing a brochure holder, and to the Polk County Community Foundation (who funded this project through the Kudzu Eradication Initiative grant)!
PAC Welcomes our new Executive Director, Mary Walter!
Mary Walter
The Pacolet Area Conservancy (PAC) is pleased to announce the appointment of Mary Arrington Walter as Executive Director. Mary formerly served as Executive Director of SPACE, the Spartanburg Area Conservancy, a conservation land trust based in Spartanburg, SC. There she led that organization to national accreditation with the Land Trust Alliance. She brings over 20 years of experience in the field of conservation to PAC.
See the “News,” “Recent News” tab for the full story!
The Land Trust Alliance just released this information: GREAT NEWS for CONSERVATION!!!!
The enhanced tax incentive for conservation easements was renewed for 2012 and 2013! Congress has passed a fiscal cliff deal that renews the enhanced income tax deduction for conservation easements through 2013, and retroactive to the beginning of 2012. This incentive will help land trusts work with farmers, ranchers and other modest-income landowners to increase the pace of conservation by about a third.
(source: http://www.landtrustalliance.org/policy/tax-matters/campaigns/incentive-faqs)
The Enhanced Easement Tax Incentive (Updated for 2013)
1. How does the enhanced easement incentive change the law for conservation donations?
The enhanced easement incentive:
- Raises the deduction a donor can take for donating a conservation easement from 30% of their adjusted gross income in any year to 50%;
- Allows qualifying farmers and ranchers to deduct up to 100% of their income (see the above link for more details); and
- Extends the carry-forward period for a donor to take tax deductions for voluntary conservation agreements from 5 to 15 years (in addition to the year of donation).
2. Can you give me an example?
Without the enhanced easement incentive, a landowner earning $50,000 a year who donated a $1 million conservation easement could take a $15,000 deduction for the year of the donation and for an additional 5 years – a total of $90,000 in tax deductions.
The enhanced easement deduction allows that landowner to deduct $25,000 for the year of the donation and then for an additional 15 years. That’s $400,000 in deductions. If the landowner qualifies as a farmer or rancher, they can zero out their taxes. In that case, they could take a maximum of $800,000 in deductions for their million dollar gift.
If you are interested in, or know anyone that might be interested in placing a conservation easement on their property, please spread the word! As of now, these enhanced tax incentives are only secured until December 31, 2013, and there is a lot of work that will need to be done to ensure that we can finalize the conservation easement by that time.
PAC was selected as one of 8 beneficiary local non-profits for the TR&HC Ariat Jumper Challenge June 7-9 at FENCE! Thank you Tryon Riding & Hunt Club!
For more information, please read the attached Tryon Daily Bulletin article!
PAC ADDS IMPORTANT PIECE TO PROTECTED WATERSHED AREA
PAC is pleased to announce the purchase of an 8.5 acre gem near the North Pacolet River on the Saluda Grade. The property is adjacent to over 100 acres of already protected lands and is an important addition to the preservation of the North Pacolet River watershed. Little Falls Creek bisects the property and Little Falls itself begins at the top of the property and cascades through the property and into the North Pacolet River below. It is truly a beautiful and amazing piece of property!
A special thanks to the landowner, PAC Past President Carole Bartol, PAC Land Protection Specialist Pam Torlina, Board Member Robert Williams, PAC volunteer and attorney Alan Leonard and attorney Phil Feagan for working diligently to preserve this property in perpetuity. The purchase of the property was made possible in part by a donation from the Tom and Muriel Nash Estate and the many donors who have contributed in recent months. Thanks to all of you.
Local Artist’s Work Benefits PAC!
Local artist, Carol Icard, showed her artwork at a solo exhibition, “The Nature of Abstraction” at Upstairs Artspace in Tryon on May 31 through July 13.
A portion of her sales were donated to the Pacolet Area Conservancy, “to support and honor the valuable natural resources we are fortunate to have in these beautiful Foothills.”
-Carol Beth Icard
www.carolbethicard.com
Click here to learn more about Carol Icard.
PAC is pleased to announce the receipt of a grant from the Polk County Community Foundation for education programs at Walnut Creek Preserve!
PAC is pleased to announce that we have just received a grant from the Polk County Community Foundation for our Kudzu Eradication Initiative!
We can always use more volunteers for this worthy cause!
Click on the link below to check out PAC’s new spring newsletter! Click here: Spring Newsletter, 2013
The Pacolet Area Conservancy (PAC) is pleased to announce a recent gift from Pacolet Milliken Enterprises, Inc. The generous award will be used in support of PAC’s mission to protect and conserve the natural resources of our area. PAC extends grateful thanks to Pacolet Milliken Enterprises for their support.
PAC is pleased to announce that we were named the beneficiary of the Green Creek Hounds Charity Hunt Ball in the fall of 2012!
PAC is in need of tools to help us continue our stewardship efforts!If you happen to have tools lying around that you are no longer using and you would like to donate them to PAC, we would greatly appreciate it!
On our “wish list”:
-chain saws
-weed whackers
-brush saws
-lops
-clippers
-work gloves
-eye and ear protection
-push lawn mower
Do you know of a sensitive area that is scheduled for clearing and contains a lot of beautiful, native plants? Contact PAC! We would love the opportunity to visit the site and, perhaps help rescue the native plants there!
For information on Voluntary Conservation Easements (Agreements), click on the link below to download the latest in depth publication, Voluntary Conservation Agreements: An Introduction for North Carolina Land Owners, or contact the Pacolet Area Conservancy for a printed version.
Click here to download the 3 MB pdf: Voluntary Conservation Agreements: An Introduction for North Carolina Land Owners
Contact us to GET INFORMATION about how protecting your property may qualify you in for FEDERAL & STATE TAX BENEFITS! And how preservation of your land can set the standard for our area’s conservation.
Visit us to SEE A MAP showing where your property fits in the landscape of permanently protected land in the area, and/or see where your farm fits into protected land in Horse Country!
If you’d like to see a 10 MINUTE VIDEO about protecting our horse country, featuring interviews about how Virginia’s Piedmont Environmental Council protected their vast Horse Country, just drop in or contact PAC to for details on how you can watch or borrow our “Saving Horse Country” DVD.
PAC works not only with landowners, but also with other land trusts, state and federal agencies to accomplish conservation goals. PAC also endorses the North Carolina Wildlife Action Plan, or SWAP, which encourages the preservation of wildlife through habitat conservation.
