The Anne Arundel Soil Conservation District has named the Chesapeake Bay Foundation its 2006 Cooperator of the Year for its work preserving Holly Beach Farm, a 300-acre peninsula near the Chesapeake Bay Bridge.
The annual award honors the organization that best fulfills the district?s aim of implementing state policy to prevent erosion and conserve soil and water, especially within the agricultural community.
The Chesapeake Bay Foundation?s work began when it bought the beachfront farm about four years ago from the Gately family. When it purchased the land, much of the wetlands were filling in with sediment, and harmful invasive reed plants called phragmites were overgrown.
The foundation improved the natural conditions there, with the help of hundreds of volunteers, restoring more than 25 acres of wetlands, planting about 30 acres of trees and establishing a 150-foot buffer separating the farmland from the Bay and its tributaries.
Holly Beach Farm is not only environmentally successful; farmer Kevin Winsor manages 80 acres of crops there, harvesting corn and soybeans.
The efforts of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and its volunteers should serve as a model for other farm owners, foundation spokeswoman Beth Lefevbre said.
“There are so many programs out there that farmers can use. Hopefully, we can reach out to more of them, and let them know they can take part,” she said.
Holly Beach Farm “showcases how farming and conservation go hand in hand,” said Rob Schnabel, a restoration scientist at the foundation.
