Heritage Conservancy Acquires Land for Future Preservation; Transfer Aligns with Dow’s 2025 Sustainability Goals
Heritage Conservancy and The Dow Chemical Company (NYSE: DOW) are collaborating to preserve Croydon Woods, located between Bristol and Croydon, Pennsylvania. As part of this collaboration, Heritage Conservancy acquires the 80-acre parcel of the land from Rohm and Haas Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of Dow, which was transferred for preservation purposes and will remain green space in perpetuity. Croydon Woods is one of the last remaining wooded wetland forests in the region and the transfer also received support from Bucks County and the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.
The perpetual element of this land transfer aligns with Dow’s 2025 Sustainability Goals, specifically “Valuing Nature”, a commitment to make business decisions in a different way – one that appreciates the value of nature’s services. It also supports Heritage Conservancy’s mission to preserve and protect Bucks and Montgomery County’s natural and historic heritage.
“For years, Croydon Woods has been a treasured piece of the Bucks County landscape,” said Claire Quinn, Dow’s site leader in Bristol. “We are so pleased to know that the land will be protected for generations to come by the Heritage Conservancy.”
The primary purpose of Heritage Conservancy’s acquisition of Croydon Woods is to continue protecting the land’s significant natural resources and vibrant ecosystem. The Bucks County Natural Areas Inventory ranks Croydon Woods as one of only 19 “Priority 1” sites of statewide and countywide significance. It cites the forested tract as an excellent example of coastal floodplain with boggy, forested wetlands along both the north and south branches and headwaters of Hog Run Creek where seven species of endangered plants and four species of threatened plants exist.
“Heritage Conservancy is tremendously excited to preserve land in the more developed portion of Bucks County,” said Jeffrey L. Marshall, president of Heritage Conservancy. “Croydon Woods is an island of green, and the environmental, economic and emotional benefits of living near open space has been well documented.”
With plans to maintain the site in a mostly natural, undisturbed state, Heritage Conservancy will perform a complete inventory and assessment of the property’s natural resources and develop a management and stewardship plan to protect the land and its ecosystem. In addition, opportunities to further incorporate public access, passive recreation and environmental education at the property without negatively impacting the sensitive natural areas will be explored.
Heritage Conservancy and Dow build on a strong legacy in Bucks County to support projects that are mutually beneficial for each organization as well as for the surrounding community and environment. Heritage Conservancy has successfully worked with local schools to provide hands-on, outdoor learning experiences at the nearby Bristol Marsh, a portion of which is owned by the Company and protected by a conservation easement. Heritage Conservancy will use its expertise and community partnerships to encourage the use of Croydon Woods for similar purposes.
About Heritage Conservancy
Based in Doylestown, Pa., Heritage Conservancy is committed to being the region’s premier, nationally-accredited conservator. We are a community-based organization dedicated to the preservation and protection of significant open spaces, natural resources, and our historic heritage. A champion of conservation best practices, Heritage Conservancy believes that everyone is responsible for stewardship and seeks to enlighten, engage, and empower others to help achieve this mutual vision. More information can be found at www.heritageconservancy.org.
About Dow
Dow (NYSE: DOW) combines the power of science and technology to passionately innovate what is essential to human progress. The Company is driving innovations that extract value from the intersection of chemical, physical and biological sciences to help address many of the world’s most challenging problems such as the need for clean water, clean energy generation and conservation, and increasing agricultural productivity. Dow’s integrated, market driven, industry-leading portfolio of specialty chemical, advanced materials, agrosciences and plastics businesses delivers a broad range of technology-based products and solutions to customers in approximately 180 countries and in high-growth sectors such as packaging, electronics, water, coatings and agriculture. In 2014, Dow had annual sales of more than $58 billion and employed approximately 53,000 people worldwide. The Company’s more than 6,000 product families are manufactured at 201 sites in 35 countries across the globe. References to “Dow” or the “Company” mean The Dow Chemical Company and its consolidated subsidiaries unless otherwise expressly noted. More information about Dow can be found at www.dow.com.