WRLC's work has included development of agricultural preservation restrictions for agricultural land, conservation restrictions for nonagricultural land, accepting gifts of land or development restriction donations from families and other parties. We have worked with families, nonprofit groups and local municipalities to help them apply for and receive funding for land protection, including assisting with grant applications to provide resources for land protection.
To further our conservation efforts, in January 2017 the small, all-volunteer board/staff of Winding River made the decision to join with the Franklin Land Trust. The Franklin Land Trust (FLT) was established in 1987 in Ashfield, MA and has worked for the past 30 years, conserving over 30,000 acres of land throughout western Massachusetts. FLT has a proven track record of success conserving farms, forests, wildlands and other natural resources. They bring with them nine seasoned staff members with a combined 160 years of conservation, stewardship, outreach and fundraising experience. The goal of this collaboration between two, well-established land conservation organizations, is for a more efficient response to conservation requests, an annual monitoring plan for all of our conservation restrictions, and the ability to keep our friends and members up-to-date about our latest projects and programs. We hope that you, our friends and supporters, are as excited as we are about this new direction for land conservation in our region. Learn more about Franklin Land Trust.
Many of our protected lands are open for hikers to enjoy.
VIEW PLACES TO VISIT Or Hike
Questions about preserving a piece of property? We can help.
How TO PRESERVe YOUR LANDWinding River Land Conservancy (WRLC) is a 501 (C) (3) nonprofit organization whose mission is to preserve and protect natural open space and farmland in Western Hampden County and parts of southern Hampshire County for present and future generations. Winding River Land Conservancy has protected over 3,000 acres since its inception in 1998 and continues to preserve properties annually.
