Northumberland Land Trust to acquire property near Rice Lake

Photo courtesy of the Northumberland Land Trust

The Northumberland Land Trust is in the process to acquire another large parcel of land for environment protection. The 142 acre plot has views of Rice Lake, significant woodlands and the water features that exist on the property extend to all the adjacent properties to the north and east of the property.  This provides good ecological connectivity and opportunity to expand the protected area in the future.

“One of NLT’s goals is to create wildlife corridors throughout Northumberland County,” said Amanda Newell, Executive Director of Northumberland Land Trust.  “This property provides conservation connectivity between Rice Lake, the Northumberland County Forest, the Oak Ridges Moraine and Lake Ontario, so this donation becomes a critical component of our strategy.”

The interior forest provides significant wildlife habitat for various species at risk. Much of the woodlands on the south-east side is young and regenerating forest, where further in there is a diverse mix of deciduous, coniferous and mixed forests as well as a treed swamp and fen. Butternut and Black Ash have been documented on the property which are both provincially endangered species.

The property will be called the Hillside Nature Reserve.