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News Release RI Department of Environmental Management 235 Promenade St., Providence, RI 02908 (401) 222-2771 TDD/(401) 222-4462
ALMOND ANNOUNCES STATE TO PURCHASE TOSTE FARM IN TIVERTON AND LITTLE COMPTON The $2.93 million purchase and sale agreement has been signed and the state properties committee approved the contract today. The farm is being purchased from is current owner, Richard Morash of Boston, in two installments. The Tiverton acreage, which consists of about 300 acres, will be purchased by the end of this year; the acreage in Little Compton will be purchased after July 1, 2002. Funding comes from a variety of sources, including a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service $1 million North American Wetlands Conservation Act (NAWCA) grant awarded to DEM. State open space bond funds in the amount of $1,000,000 were previously committed toward the purchase, as were $930,000 in funds from The Nature Conservancy, which include $750,000 from the Champlin Foundations. "This open space acquisition is an important part of our continuing effort to preserve Rhode Island's natural heritage," said Almond. "It also illustrates what can be done when federal, state and private resources are brought together to retain undeveloped land for future generations." "Acquisition of the Toste Farm as a state management area will assure the protection of significant wildlife habitat while providing the public with several hundred acres of prime open space for recreation," said DEM Director Jan Reitsma. "The Toste property is central to a large unbroken area of natural habitats north of Watson Reservoir. By purchasing the farm as a state management area, we maintain a contiguous greenspace for wildlife and recreation while offering additional protection to the City of Newport's water supply." The old dairy farm straddles the Tiverton-Little Compton line, with access from Eight Rod Road. It is situated in the Watson Reservoir watershed that provides drinking water to the City of Newport and abuts land owned by the city. "It is terrific to have a signed agreement on this large project," said Douglas Parker, Director of The Nature Conservancy's Rhode Island field office. "It is one of the biggest conservation projects statewide in years. We're pleased to work with the state on this. We've committed to fund one-third of the funding privately and we're currently trying to raise those funds." "The Toste Farm is one of the premier sites in the Tiverton-Little Compton area," said David King, Executive Director of the Champlin Foundations. "We are delighted that with all the other sources of funding we are jointly able to preserve it." The property contains a mosaic of small woodlots, abandoned agricultural fields, pastures and meadows, and a nearly 50-acre wetland complex of swamps, small streams and ponds that feed into Watson Reservoir. Well-developed hedgerows separate the fields throughout the parcel, providing excellent travel lands, cover and nesting habitats for the diverse wildlife found on the property. Wildlife includes wild turkey, ring-necked pheasant, bobwhite, non-game songbirds, cottontail rabbit, raccoon, fox, mink and otter. A ten-acre pond on the property is a magnet for amphibians and reptiles such as frogs, painted turtles and northern water snakes. Vegetation includes a wide variety of flowering shrubs and wildflowers in the field complex, and red maple oak-holly and yellow birch in the swamp areas. DEM will prepare a management plan for the property, which will be used, as is its Simmons Hill sister property, for both active and passive recreational activities such as hiking, hunting, fishing and bird-watching. NAWCA grants are awarded by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to protect waterfowl habitat. This is the fourth such grant received by DEM, bringing the total NAWCA funds received by the state to $4.3 million. The first three grants were used to protect 578 acres of land in the South County area. This is the first such grant the state has received for a habitat protection project in the East Bay. -30- |
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