Delaware Wild Lands, Inc. is a private, tax-exempt non-profit organization dedicated to the conservation and preservation of natural areas through the acquisition and management of strategic parcels of land.

Background

The organization was established in 1961 by founder and president Edmund H. "Ted" Harvey. Delaware Wild Lands' first purchase was approximately 80 acres of land surrounding Trussum Pond, in

Sussex County, Delaware Sussex County is a county in the southern part of the U.S. state of Delaware, on the Delmarva Peninsula. As of the 2020 census, the population was 237,378, making it the state's second most populated county behind New Castle and ahead of Ke ...

. In the following years, approximately 1,700 acres were acquired surrounding Trussum Pond, all of which has since been transferred to the state of Delaware, and is now part of

Trap Pond State Park Trap Pond State Park is a Delaware state park located near Laurel, Delaware, United States. It preserves one of the largest surviving fragments of what was once an extensive wetland in what is now southwestern Sussex County. The state park f ...

. Delaware Wild Lands currently owns and manages over 19,000 acres spread across all three counties of Delaware and a small portion in

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

. Delaware Wild Lands' largest contiguous holding is The Great Cypress Swamp. It also manages the Sharp Farm in

New Castle County New Castle County is the northernmost of the three counties of the U.S. state of Delaware (New Castle, Kent, and Sussex). As of the 2020 census, the population was 570,719, making it the most populous county in Delaware, with nearly 60% of the ...

and Milford Neck in Kent County. Currently, Delaware Wild Lands is engaged in active

Forest Management Forest management is a branch of forestry concerned with overall administrative, legal, economic, and social aspects, as well as scientific and technical aspects, such as silviculture, forest protection, and forest regulation. This includes man ...

including SFI certified sustainable timber harvest. The goal of much of this harvest is for site preparation for the restoration of Atlantic White-cedar. Delaware Wild Lands is also responsible for protecting nearly 3,500 acres of coastal marsh near Blackbird Creek from development by

Shell Oil Shell plc is a British multinational oil and gas company, headquartered in London, England. Shell is a public limited company with a primary listing on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and secondary listings on Euronext Amsterdam and the New Y ...

in the early 1970s.

References

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External links

Official website
Nature conservation organizations based in the United States Land trusts in the United States Non-profit organizations based in Delaware Organizations established in 1961 1961 establishments in Delaware