Penn Vet Protects 145 Acres of Chester County Farmland With Conservation Easement |
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September 3, 2013,
Volume 60, No. 3 |
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Gwendolyn Lacy from the Land Conservancy for Southern Chester County and Corinne Sweeney, associate dean for New Bolton Center. |
145 acres of the New Bolton Center's pastureland and cropland will be protected. |
With the signing of an agricultural conservation easement, the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine has ensured that 145 acres of its New Bolton Center campus will be protected from development and will continue the area’s agricultural tradition. The Land Conservancy for Southern Chester County, a non-profit charitable organization based in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, will administer the easement during its 25-year term.
“This was a wonderful opportunity for Penn Vet to continue the positive relationship we have with the Chester County community,” said Corinne Sweeney, associate dean for New Bolton Center. “The easement will help sustain the area’s long and proud agricultural heritage. We’re so pleased to be a part of it.”
The parcel of land placed under the easement—comprising nearly a quarter of the New Bolton Center’s 687-acre campus—is currently used as cropland and pastureland. The easement ensures that these traditional uses will endure, while restricting non-agricultural development.
Since 1952, Penn Vet’s New Bolton Center Campus has offered state-of-the-art veterinary services for large animals such as horses, cattle, pigs, goats and sheep. The campus is also home to a working dairy, a farrier and a traveling field service to offer veterinary care for individuals and farms in the nearby area. As a result, the School has formed strong ties to the Chester County agricultural community.
The Marshak Dairy is named in honor of Robert Marshak, the ninth dean of the School of Veterinary Medicine whose support was instrumental in establishing the farm. Built in 1996, the greenhouse dairy was the first of its kind and was recognized as a dairy of distinction in 1998. The greenhouse design uses natural lighting and excellent ventilation within the barn to promote a healthy environment for the cows.
The Marshak Dairy provides an easily accessible working dairy farm for research trials. In addition, the Diary serves as a laboratory for teaching students on topics related to cow healthcare, preventive medicine, nutrition and food safety.
At New Bolton Center’s Farrier Service, one of the nation’s oldest, most well respected programs, their farriers have evolved ground-breaking techniques using glue-on shoes and synthetic polymers for hoof reconstruction.
Today, chief of Farrier Services Pat Reilly continues to explore new materials and techniques for the advancement of hoof care, with studies underway to include the development of a protocol for in-shoe force measurement as a means of quantifying the effect of different shoes on the hoof.
In addition, computer analysis of the hoof can assist in the accumulation of data which leads to a better understanding of deformation of the equine hoof as seen in under-run heels and hoof capsule distortion.
Since the hoof is such a critical element of a horse’s viability, New Bolton Center Farrier Service partners with Equine Sports Medicine as well as Surgery and Orthopedics to diagnose and treat the equine, as well as to research and develop new techniques in hoof care.
The William Boucher Field Service at New Bolton Center provides routine and emergency healthcare for equine and food animal clients within a 30-mile radius of the hospital. The group’s specialists offer preventative healthcare, reproductive services, evaluation and treatment of lameness, medical and surgical disorders and on-farm diagnostic services.
They are a fully equipped ambulatory practice that services all equids, cows, and some small ruminants. Their goal is to care for their client’s animals with expert knowledge, state-of-the-art equipment and compassion while providing clinical training to veterinary students. They strive to bring the best of primary care to their patients.
“The New Bolton Center campus has been a staple of this community for generations,” said Gwendolyn Lacy, executive director of The Land Conservancy for Southern Chester County. “We are thrilled to hold this easement on 145 acres of prime pasture and croplands. It is reassuring to recognize that through this easement we all share a common vision of maintaining the rural integrity and the beauty of the landscape for years to come.”
Formed in 1995, the mission of The Land Conservancy for Southern Chester County is to ensure the perpetual preservation of open space, natural resources, historic sites and working agricultural lands throughout Southern Chester County. With this new agreement at New Bolton, the Conservancy expands the area under its protection to nearly 700 acres.
Penn Vet will maintain ownership of the land, which is located along Route 926 east of the main portion of the New Bolton Center campus, while The Land Conservancy will hold the easement and act as a guardian of its provisions. |