Stewardship
According to Merriam-Webster, “stewardship” can be defined as the “Conducting, supervising or managing of something; especially: the careful and responsible management of something entrusted to one’s care.”
For PLC, stewardship is the obligation to ensure properties protected by PLC are cared for in a manner consistent with the site’s ecological riches and the terms agreed to by all involved parties.
For instance, if PLC protects a river’s water quality through a conservation easement, then it is PLC’s obligation to ensure that activities in the easement area that negatively impact water quality are prohibited. The easement terms will require maintenance of a riparian buffer zone in which activities such as timber harvesting are prohibited. Through regular monitoring PLC will ensure that the terms are being upheld and will enforce the terms if they are not upheld.
Through PLC’s Stewardship Program, PLC ensures the following obligations are met:
- Easement terms protect the land’s ecological riches;
- Easement terms are upheld forever;
- Landowner relationships are maintained and strengthened;
- Acquired lands are placed with the most appropriate steward forthe long-term benefit of the land and its ecological riches;
- PLC Preserves serve as an example of high quality land stewardship that other landowners can follow and
- Adequate financial resources are available to carry out the Stewardship Program and legally defend easement terms, if necessary.
If PLC’s Stewardship Program did not meet these obligations, land protection would be meaningless. By meeting these obligations, PLC permanently protects land and helps ensure future generations will have clean water to drink, clean air to breathe, and fresh food to eat. Through effective stewardship, PLC is protecting the nature of the Piedmont while creating a legacy of protected lands that balances preservation and growth.