RiverLink’s Newest Conservation Easement at Olivette Riverside Community and Farm

ASHEVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA, UNITED STATES, January 30, 2023 /EINPresswire.com/ — Olivette Riverside Community and Farm is excited to have partnered with RiverLink to protect 16.63 acres of healthy forest, steep slope, and riparian buffer near the French Broad River in northern Buncombe County.

A new conservation easement, which closed in December 2022, safeguards 450 linear feet along Newfound Creek; two North Carolina Heritage Program-priority species: Eastern Hemlock and Riverbank Wild Rye; and suitable habitat for several other rare and important native species, including the Montane Alluvial Forest and Low Elevation Seep communities.

Olivette community members and partners are excited to work with RiverLink to ensure this portion of the 400-acre “agrihood” remains preserved in perpetuity, and educate residents on best management practices to support the conservation values that the easement was established to protect.

About RiverLink’s Land Resources Program: RiverLink is working to be increasingly strategic with its land trust program, which focuses on the protection of land within immediate proximity of the French Broad River and major tributaries. We prioritize the riparian, wetland and floodplain habitats that safeguard water quality, native plants, and wildlife, with communities of endangered, threatened, or rare species being especially important. We are also interested in facilitating projects with opportunities for stream restoration, green stormwater infrastructure, public river access, parks, greenways, education and scenic views.

Learn more about RiverLink and land conservation.