3,100 Acres of the Catskill Park Permanently Protected

NEVERSINK — —The Open Space Institute (OSI) today announced the acquisition of more than 3,100 forested acres within the Catskill Park—one of the largest parcels of privately-owned, contiguous forestland remaining within the Catskill Blue Line. The site plays a key role in safeguarding sources of clean water, providing high-quality habitat for birds, turtles, fish, and other wildlife, and enhancing recreational opportunities. (Link to map and photos here.)

Before OSI stepped in to permanently protect the “Blue Hill” property, a proposal had been developed for the site that included a large-scale mix of housing, resort, and commercial uses. OSI intends to transfer the land to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) as an addition to the Willowemoc Wild Forest; once transferred, it will be the largest addition to the Catskill Forest Preserve in nearly 25 years.

Featuring abundant natural resources, the newly protected land includes native hardwood forests, undisturbed wetlands, nearly 20 miles of streambanks, and a ridgeline of peaks—the highest more than 2,700 feet in elevation—that provide uninterrupted and sweeping views of the surrounding mountains.

“OSI’s conservation of the Blue Hill property is a monumental win for clean water, habitat, and recreation in the Catskills,” said Erik Kulleseid, OSI’s president and CEO. “This new acquisition is a rare find, both for its sheer size and for the wealth of benefits it provides. Over the last four decades, OSI has protected more than 25,000 acres of land within the Catskill Park, and we’re proud to continue our commitment to conserving the landscapes most vital to the health and wellbeing of people and wildlife.”

“Partners like OSI are instrumental to helping DEC achieve the State’s ambitious goal to conserve 30 percent of New York’s lands and waters by 2030,” said DEC Acting Commissioner Amanda Lefton. “DEC prioritizes land acquisition as a critical strategy to protect New York State’s ecological assets, wildlife populations, and waterways, and we are thankful for our partnership with OSI allowing this property in the Catskills to be preserved for generations to come.”

“I would like to take this opportunity to welcome our new neighbors, OSI, to the Town of Neversink. As a west of Hudson watershed town, we welcome the benefits that this purchase will provide to water quality in our watershed as well as the Delaware River watershed. On a personal note, I look forward to the many recreational opportunities that this will provide to the public,” said Chris Mathews, Supervisor of the Town of Neversink.

Protection of the Blue Hill property will play a significant role in safeguarding water quality as it flows into the vast Delaware River watershed, the source of clean water for more than 15 million people in New York City, Trenton, Philadelphia, Wilmington, and northeastern Pennsylvania. The property’s abundant streams and wetlands filter water entering the Neversink River to the south and the Fir Brook and Willowemoc Rivers to the north—waterways within both the Delaware River watershed and New York City’s Neversink Reservoir watershed.

The Blue Hill property is adjacent to the 14,800-acre Willowemoc Wild Forest, which is bordered to the northeast by the 33,500-acre Big Indian Wilderness area of the Catskill Forest Preserve. Almost completely forested, the property joins an immense unfragmented corridor of conserved lands in the southwestern Catskills. Its varied topography offers a wide range of microclimates, creating high-value wildlife habitat for songbirds including the wood thrush, hermit thrush, and black-throated green warbler, as well as wood turtles and wide-ranging mammals such as black bears, fisher, and bobcats.

OSI’s preservation of the Blue Hill property also safeguards cold-water habitat in the Fir Brook and upper Willowemoc Creek for native brook trout. Prized by fly fishers, brook trout require undisturbed habitat with high water quality to reproduce. The Willowemoc is one of America’s first and most famous fly-fishing streams and, along with the nearby Beaverkill, is considered the birthplace of fly fishing in the United States. OSI’s conservation of the land will support the near-pristine habitat that brook trout need to thrive, while at the same time supporting local fishing tourism.

A small network of logging roads crisscrosses the property, providing an opportunity to establish trails that support hiking, horseback riding, snowmobiling, cross-country skiing, fishing, and hunting. Once transferred to DEC, the land may be opened to the public in accordance with the state’s unit management plan for the site.

OSI purchased the property for $6.2 million dollars with support from its Delaware River Watershed Protection Fund (DRWPF) and an anonymous foundation.

Launched in 2014 with funding from the William Penn Foundation’s Delaware River Watershed Initiative, OSI’s DRWPF has protected more than 25,000 acres of forested land to safeguard water quality in the Delaware River Watershed, a vital region for safeguarding resilient landscapes and clean water resources.