After decades of treating the our waterways like a dump, our community is finally giving them the respect that they always deserved. Waterways such as the Buffalo River – once relegated as industrial dumping grounds – have suddenly been given new leases on life thanks to efforts that include sediment dredging, shoreline habitat restoration, and the introduction of land conservation partnerships.
Now, the Buffalo Niagara River Land Trust (Land Trust) has announced that it has permanently protected approximately 52 acres of land at two separate sites known as City Ship Canal and the Concrete Central Peninsula. These sites will be kept in trust into perpetuity, which means that they will always be protected.
The sites:
- The City Ship Canal runs parallel to Lake Erie off of Fuhrmann Blvd
- The Concrete Central Peninsula is located across the river from Red Jacket Riverfront Natural Habitat Park
The Land Trust reported that this new preservation development is thanks in part to a Natural Resource Damages Settlement. To that end, the Land Trust is working with the United States Department of the Interior through Trustees from US Fish and Wildlife, the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, and the Tuscarora Nation to hold conservation easements on selected sites along the Buffalo River. At this time, these parties are coming up with a plan that will guide the restoration process, as well as the rehabilitation of the compromised ecosystems.
“These lands are part of the traditional homelands of the Haudenosaunee people. Industry reshaped the Buffalo River and surrounding communities,” said Tracy Fletcher, Executive Director of the Buffalo Niagara River Land Trust. “We are honored to play a role in protecting and healing these post-industrial landscapes through restoration and stewardship for the purpose of ensuring public access. Permanently conserving these sites is not only an investment in ecological recovery, but also an acknowledgment of the deep cultural and historical significance of the Buffalo River corridor.”
“These conservation easements represent an investment in Buffalo’s future,” said Matthew Fitzgerald, Board President of the Buffalo Niagara River Land Trust. “For generations, these lands were inaccessible or overlooked. Today, they are being permanently protected for ecological restoration, public access, and community benefit. We are proud to partner with the Trustees to ensure these remarkable waterfront spaces remain protected in perpetuity.”
“The protection and restoration of the Buffalo River has been a priority for this community since it was declared biologically dead in the 1960’s, and it has taken decades of unique collaborations, hard fought pursuits of funding, and coordination of the community voices and creativity to get the work done that was needed to put the river on a path to recovery,” said Jill Jedlicka, Executive Director of Buffalo Niagara Waterkeeper. “River protection and environmental stewardship does not stop once the heavy equipment is gone and the ribbons are cut, and Waterkeeper is grateful for the dedicated partners at the Buffalo Niagara River Land Trust who have committed to protect and steward these important Buffalo River sites into perpetuity.”
“We look forward to the continued collaboration between the Trustees to restore the maple-basswood forest and open meadow floodplain habitat native to this section of the Niagara River Corridor,” said Ian Drew, project leader at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s New York Ecological Services Field Office. “Together we will work to connect the neighboring community to this space with plans for an expanded accessible trail and new kayak launch at City Ship Canal.”
This is certainly exciting news for the next chapter of our waterfront, which is finally getting its day in the sun.
Lead image (L-R): Laurie Ousley – Development Director, Tracy Fletcher – Executive Director, Lucy Rauker – Administrative & Marketing Coordinator