Supporters came together on September 21, 2024, to enjoy an evening filled with music, food and friends marking Three Valley Conservation Trust's 30-year anniversary. The night included music from The Farmer and the Crow, a video showcasing our work and a special presentation of the Wallace I. Edwards Conservationist awards to Mark Boardman, Steve Gordon, Tom Farmer, Donna McCollum, Steve Nimis, and Ed Teets to acknowledge their tremendous contributions to the Ruder Preserve.
Founded 1994 as the Four Mile Valley Conservation Trust
Ruder donated
First easement
Renamed Three Valley Conservation Trust and hired the first director Larry Frimerman
Inception of Ohio Department of Agriculture’s Office of Farmland Preservation’s Agricultural Easement Purchase Program.
The very first easement that Three Valley Conservation Trust acquired (2000), a 91.3 acre easement donated to TVCT adjacent to an eager-to-expand gravel operation. The easement was originally donated by Ralph Pontius
First conservation easement in Morgan Twnp.
Carl and Marge Hesselbrock (included the core 105 acre home farm originally owned by Governor Bebb.)
Accredited
November: 1st Paddys Run easement from Fernald Settlement.
Hired a Land Protection Specialist
Hired a Stewardship Specialist
Moved offices from Morning Sun Road
Drone
Recently, a generous donor has offered to purchase an unmanned aerial vehicle and send our stewardship specialist through operational training. Thanks to our donor, Randy Evans has just completed training classes at Flamingo Air in Cincinnati on February 11th and 12th. We will not be conducting flights until we have successfully petitioned for the necessary FAA exemptions. However, in the near future we expect this new technology will significantly contribute to meeting our mounting yearly monitoring obligations.
Salamander Run
17 water features constructed or restored
Salamander Run 125 acres transferred to MetroParks of Butler County
Ruder 1st Boardwalk under construction
Wally Edwards Recipients
Edge of Farm wildlife
Hays Cummins snapped this picture of an American Toad at the Edge of the Farm Conservation Area, catching ripples in the water from the toad's call.
Paddys Run/Fernald Efforts: 2 closings Minges and Minges
Both easements are located within the Paddys Run Conservation Project (PRCP) area and were purchased using Fernald Natural Resource Damage Funds. The PRCP is administered by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (OEPA) with funds provided to it from the federal government as part of the Superfund restoration of the Fernald uranium processing site near Ross, Ohio. Three Valley Conservation Trust is the contractor grantee responsible for ensuring the best preservation possible for groundwater resources and land impacted by this U.S. government directed cold-war effort.
Closed on easement #200. Michael and Vickie Kilroy easements #200 and #201 in Montgomery County
Located along Little Twin Creek, the Kilroy property features a wooded tract and modern house on 34 secluded acres. Adjoining is an 82-acre small grain farm with mid-19th century house, timber frame barns, riparian waterway and cultivated fields. Nearly 2,000 feet of blue line stream protected from future infrastructure development, the wooded riparian corridors on the Kilroy properties will continue to provide habitat, prevent soil erosion, and support water quality downstream for wildlife and for people. “We did our easements for the animals, so the wildlife has a safe place to live in the future.”
Michael Kilroy passed
Chip’s Run (Chip Hafele) restoration projects begin.
A five-year plan to retire three bottomland crop fields to grasslands, prairies and savanna. Over 100 plant species have since been recorded that include spring ephemerals and 41 species of trees and shrubs. Field surveys by ODNR recorded 66 macroinvertebrates along DryFork and 23 fish species on Dry Fork and Sours Run.
Parking and Boardwalk Ribbon Cutting at Ruder
Randy Evans promoted to Executive Director
Angst Farm Dedication.
Soil Health Program with Dave Brandt
Hoffmann Wetland and Stream Restoration
Host organization for SWOWA (logo)
Three Valley has accepted the role as host organization for the newly reorganized Southwest Ohio Woodland Association (SWOWA) and began coordinating regional meetings on a quarterly basis. SWOWA members range from landowners with small back yard woodland lots to professional state foresters. All are working together to address threats from invasive species and establish a network of support as we work to increase the health of these woodland habitats.
Molson Coors Trenton Brewery Wetlands
2nd Boardwalk opens connecting Ruder to the OATs.
2023/2024: Seed Libraries open
Henshaw Wetland Dedicated
