The restoration projects that GPC’s stewardship staff implement on our properties get a lot of attention, and rightly so. Our stewardship team are old hats at making GPC work parties feel like a fun day with friends! But how does the team know what to do, and when and where to do it? Enter the magic of documentation – never has administrative work been so cool!
When GPC acquires a new property, our team conducts baseline documentation to record the condition of a property at the time of acquisition and identify the long-term management plans for the property. The documentation looks different based on what type of property was acquired – if it’s land that GPC purchased or was donated, staff create Management Plans; if it’s a conservation easement staff create Baseline Documentation Reports. There are many similarities between the two, but the key difference is that the stewardship team doesn’t actively manage conservation easement land, they ensure the purpose and terms of the easement are upheld. Visit our Conservation program page to learn all about how conservation easements work.
To make these plans and reports, staff visit the property multiple times and conduct a lot of in-house computer work. During site visits, they compile photographs of the property’s boundaries and interior and create comprehensive documentation of the habitats and species observed. Back in the office they interpret easements and legal documents, conduct further research on the history and conditions of the property, make maps, write descriptive narratives, and contract expert review of significant habitats like wetlands. All of this is combined in a comprehensive management plan or baseline documentation report.
In addition to all this work and documentation, staff also define the long-term management goals and objectives for the property that guide our work for the foreseeable future. Depending on the property and the plan, we may plant native plants, enhance wildlife habitat, remove invasive species, restore forests, estuaries, and lagoons, and so on.
The documentation doesn’t stop there. Stewardship staff are also responsible for updating management plans and baseline documentation reports as changes to each property occur. Staff will write addendums for conservation easements when the Deed of Conservation Easement has been edited or changed. They will write Current Conditions Reports for properties that have outdated management plans, or when a property undergoes significant change: when a conservation easement landowner exercises a reserved right (e.g., subdividing a property as is allowed within the easement); if a property has undergone significant restoration and management (e.g., floodplain restoration); in response to natural disasters; and so on. These reports, like all baseline documentation, are compiled through site visits, photos, mapping and more.
As time goes on, we compare the conditions and management of a property against the baseline documentation and original long-term management goals to ensure we’re working towards healthy and vibrant ecosystems for generations to come.
In 2024, GPC’s Stewardship team has the task of writing sixteen plans and reports for new and current properties. These plans take a lot of work and time – by December the stewardship team will have spent over 30% of their staff time making sure that our properties are well documented now and for future land managers! To remain accredited through the Land Trust Alliance, GPC must complete these plans and reports. But as our team says, accreditation is a reflection of the importance of these practices, not the reason why they are so important.