Land Conservation
The Conservancy has protected six properties totaling 22,477 acres in Western Pennsylvania so far this year One of these projects is especially notable as the largest conservation easement in our 92-year history. The Clarion Junction Conservation Easement in the Pennsylvania Wilds encompasses 19,852 acres along the Clarion River in Elk County and Kinzua Creek in McKean County. The landscape is composed of sweeping ridges, scenic hardwood forests of sugar maple, black cherry, birch, red oak and eastern hemlock, and riparian areas that protect many high-quality streams with wild trout populations. The easement provides an important conservation connection among state forest, game lands and the Allegheny National Forest. The easement allows for public access to this property for recreation while the property owner retains the ability to conduct sustainable forestry operations.
Also in Elk County, the Conservancy acquired a 1,495-acre forested property in the heart of the Pennsylvania Wilds that was added to Moshannon State Forest. This Bennetts Valley property is within one of the largest blocks of relatively unfragmented forest in the state. Its steep slopes and hilltops are within site of the Elk Country Visitor Center. Johnson Run, a Class A Wild Trout stream flows through the property, and it also contains significant acreage along Bennett Branch Sinnemahoning Creek. WPC has protected more than 8,300 acres in Bennetts Valley, including the 1,489-acre Bennett Branch Forest, which WPC manages for sustainable forestry, recreation and restoration.
In July, the Conservancy added 735 acres in North Union Township, Fayette County to Forbes State Forest. This property was a top priority for regional connectivity and protection in relation to climate change in the region. It provides valuable habitat for a list of sensitive plant and wildlife species, and it contains two globally significant areas that border and overlap the property. Just three miles from the center of Uniontown, this protected property increases access to green space, clean waters and outdoor recreation for local residents.
A 122-acre property within the Crawford County Cambridge Swamp Natural Heritage Area is now part of State Game Land #277. The Conservancy purchased the property through a bargain sale, with the family donating half of the land’s value, and then transferred it to the PA Game Commission. The landowners wanted to preserve the
property in honor of their grandfather, who enjoyed hunting and fishing. The parcel consists of forest, small feeder streams to French Creek and wetlands, with 80% of the landscape lying within a floodplain.
The French Creek Hemlocks Natural Area in Venango County is WPC’s newest nature preserve. Acquired this spring, the 250-acre property had once been a farm, and has mature forest, vernal pools, wetlands and more than a mile of riparian frontage along French Creek. WPC will manage this preserve for public enjoyment as one of the few public fishing areas along the creek. This project also protects the biodiversity of the watershed. French Creek provides habitat for six species of federally endangered and threatened freshwater mussels and other mussel species, as well as numerous fish species of greatest conservation need in the state.
A scene from French Creek Hemlocks Natural Area, the newest WPC preserve
Tryon-Weber Woods Natural Area in Sadsbury Township, Crawford County is a WPC-owned preserve recognized by the Old-Growth Forest Network. It is composed of upland forest and a small stream valley and contains a 40-acre forest of American beech-sugar maple with trees that are more than 120 years old. In October, the Conservancy added 23 acres of forest and vernal pools to this natural area, bringing the total to 131 acres. The Conservancy maintains a 1.2mile trail at Tryon-Weber Woods, which is a great place for birdwatching.
Land Stewardship
A majority of land that WPC protects is added to existing state parks, game lands or forests, but WPC also owns and cares for 45 preserves totaling 14,600 acres that are open to the public for recreation. WPC also monitors 233 conservation easements on private property totaling over 65,000 acres. We continue to manage our preserves to restore and conserve ecological functions and to provide opportunities for low-impact recreation.
At Toms Run Nature Reserve (Allegheny County), staff removed two failing culverts from unnamed tributaries to restore the streams and allow them to flow naturally. The main trail crossed one of the culverts, and hikers can now step across the stream on large stones.
We continue to improve WPC’s 376-acre Sideling Hill Creek Conservation Area (Bedford and Fulton counties) for public access and to enhance the natural ecosystem. This spring, we installed an informational sign at the new parking lot and planted a quarter of an acre in native wildflowers adjacent to the lot.
At Dutch Hill Forest, located along the Clarion River in Jefferson County, staff and volunteers installed an entrance sign and informational kiosk at the new parking lot. We also continued improvements to the existing 3.4-mile trail.
At our Lake Pleasant Conservation Area (Erie County), we’ve begun major improvements to make the preserve more welcoming. We removed the former WPC field station from the western side of the lake and will replace it with a pavilion and storage building. On the eastern side, at the former location of a house that was removed last year, we will improve the access drive and construct a new parking lot and pavilion. This work will take place throughout the fall and should be completed by the end of the year.
Our West Branch French Creek Conservation Area contains over 1,000 acres encompassing floodplain forest and wetlands along both sides of a major French Creek tributary. To improve public access, we installed a new parking area, canoe launch and an informational sign.
In 2022, WPC received a donation of 33 acres near the City of Jeannette (Westmoreland County) that had been the site of Oakford Park, an early 20th-century trolley park and subsequent swimming pool. The pool closed in the 1980s, and all remnants of the park had been removed by 2003. Since that time, the property had started reverting to an old field and bottomland forest along Brush Creek. WPC will continue to enhance the natural ecosystem, while providing low-impact improvements for public access. For example, last month, WPC added a parking lot and universal access pathway through a portion of the property. Staff has also treated invasive plants and planted native wildflowers. Later this year and into next, we will plant trees around the parking lot and in a few other areas, and will also add signage with current and historical information about the property.
Watershed Conservation
The watershed conservation program works to improve water quality and stream connectivity by removing obstacles to stream health, such as ineffective culverts, eroding streambanks or treating flow from abandoned mine drainage sources, as well as planting riparian – or streamside – areas with native plants. As of September 30, WPC has worked with partners in 34 Western Pennsylvania counties to conserve or restore 37.95 miles of stream through 36 projects in 2024 The projects completed by our small, yet mighty, staff include streambank stabilization, and instream habitat and large wood restoration projects, in which felled trees are strategically placed in streams to slow water flow and create aquatic habitat, mimicking natural processes. Staff and volunteers also planted 21,960 native trees along streambanks, which includes live stakes (cuttings from shrub and tree species such as willows and dogwoods) and one to three-year-old seedlings planted in riparian buffers.
Clarion River at Clear Creek State Park
The Clarion River Protection Project protects the nationally designated Wild and Scenic Clarion River by restoring a severely eroding shoreline with living vegetation to reduce erosion and sedimentation and beautify the site at Clear Creek State Park in Jefferson County. This project improved water quality and aquatic habitat, preserved recreational camp sites at the park and restored the aesthetic character of the Clarion River. WPC and
contractors completed construction to stabilize approximately 1,200 feet of streambank along the Clarion River in August. Log and root-wad structures were constructed along the base of the riverbank and more than 11,520 live tree stems, including American sycamore, silky dogwood, pussy willow and ninebark, were densely planted on soil terraces along the entire length of the project. In October and November, the watershed conservation team along with volunteers planted additional live stakes at the site
Staff will develop an educational brochure about this project and other associated conservation efforts at the park, such as a dam removal and habitat improvements on Clear Creek and freshwater mussel reintroductions in the Clarion River. WPC will also install a sign at the park that will highlight the myriad of projects and partners involved in these efforts
This project, which was developed over the past seven years, highlighted the importance of partnerships by enlisting cooperation from several state agencies, Jefferson County Conservation District and Trout Unlimited
Community Forestry
WPC celebrated the planting of it 40,000th community tree since 2008 during the spring 2024 planting season with a ceremonial planting in Sharpsburg Borough near Pittsburgh. The ambitious community forestry work continues, with the planting of 1,094 trees in 53 communities throughout the region by the end of 2024. The fall planting season began in late October and will last into early December. During the spring season, 381 volunteers joined us to plant and care for trees, and we expect even more this fall.
WPC's longtime partnerships in the City of McKeesport are continuing through a new $1 million U.S. EPA environmental justice grant that was received by the City of McKeesport this year. WPC's role with this grant includes additional tree plantings in neighborhoods and parks, the construction of green infrastructure for stormwater management, and supporting a “learn-and-earn” community greening program for local youth. Our partners include the City of McKeesport, Tube City Renaissance, The Student Conservation Association and Allegheny Cleanways, among others.
WPC is also continuing its longtime partnership with the Allegheny County Parks Department and Parks Foundation to complete ecological assessments and action plans for the nine county parks. WPC community forestry and Natural Heritage Program staff collaborate on this work. The team is currently undertaking a plan for Deer Lakes Park the eighth park to receive this analysis. The plan will be finalized in January of 2025.
Gardens and Greenspace
How did eight Gardens and Greenspace staff plant 100,000 annuals and 1,936 new perennial flowers, shrubs and trees in 130 gardens this year? With the coordinated and invaluable help of 4,825 regional volunteers!
In addition, staff planted 655 street planters in downtown Pittsburgh with five seasonal displays as well as 400 hanging baskets in downtown Pittsburgh and 245 baskets in seven other local communities.
WPC has targeted 25 existing gardens to be planted with pollinator-friendly perennial plants over a two-year period, and a few community gardens this year were created or adapted to accommodate the needs of the community, including a new rain garden and walking bridge at Bennett Valley Senior Center in Elk County Staff and dedicated community members also refurbished the Page Street garden in the North Side of Pittsburgh as an ADAaccessible garden, with raised planting beds along more than 2,000 square feet of accessible paths.
In late October, WPC staff and volunteers transformed this volunteer-led community garden into a pumpkin patch for the students of Conroy Education Center and Manchester Pre-K-8 School. More than 60 Pre-k children explored the garden and picked a pumpkin donated by one of the garden’s sponsors, Giant Eagle, to take home.
Pennsylvania Natural Heritage Program
for a day.
The geographic range that the WPC Pennsylvania Natural Heritage Program (PNHP) staff covers to document and study landscapes, plants and wildlife is extensive. At any given time, PNHP staff can be found in forests, wetlands and even along cliffsides and in caves. One of the major endeavors this year was the evaluation of invasive species at ten specific locations within Natural Heritage Areas that are high conservation priority for native plants. These locations included sites in the Laurel Highlands, French Creek watershed and the Pennsylvania Wilds.
This spring, PNHP also started a new two-year County Natural Heritage Inventory update project in the southcentral Pennsylvania counties of Adams, Cumberland, Franklin and York. Staff also conducted separate wetlands assessments on state lands, and drafted a protocol to collect data that are most meaningful to resource managers. Other projects included a targeted search and discovery of an aquatic mushroom in the Allegheny River, the tiny Psathyrella, and a new shrimp-like insect found in a stream in Cumberland County. PNHP staff completed an ecological assessment at Deer Lakes Park, the sixth of seven Allegheny County parks to be assessed, and expanded the Evening Grosbeak Connectivity study.
Ecologists conducted wetlands assessments this year to draft a protocol for the rapid collection of wetlands data that are most meaningful to resource managers.
Another major endeavor underway is a comprehensive study of PA’s terrestrial and aquatic invertebrates (which include insects and crustaceans). The PNHP staff continue to work with partners to gather and digitize data to determine the conservation status of these invertebrates for the 2025-2035 Pennsylvania Wildlife Action Plan. Staff will update or assess approximately 1,400 species, many for the first time.
Fallingwater
Fallingwater’s inspirational reach extends along many diverse artistic and intellectual avenues, reaching a wide range of individuals. Fallingwater has welcomed an international audience of approximately 140,000 people through the public tour program and other educational offerings this season. We continue to make accessibility improvements to enhance all visitors’ experiences. This year we combined an accessibility goal with a unique education opportunity by working with the Pennsylvania State Modern Language Association, a statewide professional organization for language teachers. We hosted 36 language teachers for a workshop, tour of Fallingwater and professional development course. In return, they worked with their language students to translate our Fallingwater visitors map into seven different languages to share with our visitors.
This year, 5,070 students toured Fallingwater through a program that engages local schoolchildren, and an additional 1,224 students from all over the world participated in virtual field trips. Additionally, 1,540 eight-to13-year-olds participated in the Gnome House Design Challenge, a program that lets children learn about design and architecture by designing a custom house for their unique gnome client.
For high school students, Fallingwater partnered with the ACE (Architecture, Construction, and Engineering) Mentor Program, a nationwide career exploration program, which provided scholarships for 12 of their students to participate in a week-long residency at Fallingwater. The students participated in architecture and design exercises inspired by Fallingwater and in-depth, scholarly discussions and applications of Wright’s principles of organic architecture as well as career exploration.
Another program is Insight/Onsite, which are weeklong immersive programs at Fallingwater that combine discovery and observation, group exercises, technical explorations and in-depth discussions. For one of the programs this summer, cellist Mike Block and his wife, violinist Hanneke Cassel, led a creative retreat for eight university students and professional musicians. They participated in workshops and mentoring sessions with Block and Cassel, and spent evenings at Fallingwater composing and collaborating on original music, culminating in a performance in the living room (visit Fallingwater’s YouTube channel for their performance)
Insight/Onsite provides artistic and intellectual opportunities for students, professionals and life-long learners to immerse themselves in Fallingwater for inspiration and collaboration.
World Heritage Preserved
Even with tours and programs occurring at a normal pace, Fallingwater is in the midst of a preservation initiative to repair its major buildings. The construction spans stone walls, reinforced concrete, flat roofs, flagstone terraces and steel window and door frames. It is the most comprehensive preservation initiative since we stabilized the deflecting cantilevers in the early 2000s, and one that had to be undertaken to protect the integrity of Frank Lloyd Wright’s iconic design.
After completing extensive waterproofing repairs to the Guest House’s roof, addressing deteriorating concrete and injecting grout into the voids between stone walls, preservation efforts moved to the main house in early November.
One of the first projects at the main house is the injection grouting at the north facade. During the month of November, our preservation team will be injecting grout in the north wall of Edgar Kaufmann Sr.’s study
Starting in December, work will progress to the section of the wall above Edgar Kaufmann jr.’s study. The injection grouting at the main house will continue around the tower and chimney mass through the winter, to be completed in the spring. In the new year, our preservation specialists will replace the roofing membranes over the west side of the house and Edgar Kaufmann jr.’s study, as well as the waterproofing at the west terrace. The preservation work will continue through the winter while the house is closed to tours.
Much of the work requires our maintenance staff to build special temperature-controlled enclosures, which will enable our contractors to complete their work at required temperatures, allowing materials to remain dry and cure properly.
For more information and to follow the progress of the World Heritage Preserved initiative, please visit Fallingwater.org/projects/world-heritage-preservation
