Western Pennsylvania Conservancy Protects White Rocks
875 acres acquired in Fayette County

(Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  July 12, 2007)  The Western Pennsylvania Conservancy (WPC) acquired 875 acres in Georges Township, Fayette County and conveyed it to the Commonwealth’s  Bureau of Forestry.  It will be open to the public for recreational use.

WPC has been interested in conserving this tract of forestland along southern Chestnut Ridge since the early 1960s, when logging and mining activity were negatively impacting the area. Known locally as “White Rocks”  because of the large bleached sandstone outcrop that distinguishes the north face of the site, this sandstone outcrop is one of the largest and best habitats for several important species in southwest Pennsylvania including: the Allegheny Woodrat, timber rattlesnake and copperhead. In the early 1980s, WPC’s Senior Director of Conservation Science Charles Bier also discovered a green salamander on the site, a species listed as Endangered in Pennsylvania. WPC and The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) plan to coordinate efforts to maintain and increase the habitat for this rare animal.

One of the many trails on this property has been given a formal designation, Pine Knob trail.  This site also contains Redstone Canyon, which provides drainage for the Hutchinson Reservoirs.  The prominent Pottsville sandstone rock feature known as White Rocks has a long historcial significance in the local rock climbing community.  This formation of rocks has led to this property's local name of White Rocks canyon. Elevation at the face climbs from 1400 to 2100 feet.  An array of flora and fauna exist due to this elevational change.  Much quartz is evident in the rock formations. 

WPC received a grant from the DCNR and  private funding to purchase the land. Additionally, WPC partnered with the Explorers Club to move the process forward.

The headwaters of Mountain Creek forms Georges Creek (which flows through this parcel) at the confluence with Muddy Run.  Acquisition of the tract will positively contribute to the water quality of Georges Creek, which eventually drains into the Monongahela River.  Protection of this parcel in Georges Creek watershed in essence protects the ecological values including the water quality of the Monongahela River. 

“My family has enjoyed the property for many years,” said former landowner James Ruane. “ My mother used to walk up to the White Rocks when she was 88 years old.  She would take my kids to the property for the weekend and they would get ‘special’ water out of the spring. I used it mostly for recreation, to drive through the mountain.  I think it will be a nice property for everyone”

The property also has cultural significance. The lower portion was once the site of a DuPont gun powder plant that supplied the largest amount of powder during World Wars I and II. DCNR intends to provide some interpretation around the buildings and other remnant features, such as a furnace, associated with that past land use.

To date, the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy has protected more than 215,000 acres of natural lands in Pennsylvania, which represent more than 50 percent of the total land protected by a land trust agency in Pennsylvania. Now in its  75th year, Pennsylvania’s first conservancy continues to partner with grassroots organizations to protect land, restore watersheds and save natural habitats. 

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About the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy:
Since its founding in 1932, the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy has protected more than 212,000 acres of natural lands in Pennsylvania, restored watersheds and saved natural habitats for a diversity of life and uses.  The Conservancy has been responsible for the founding of six state parks, including Ohiopyle, Laurel Ridge, McConnell’s Mill, Moraine, Oil Creek and Erie Bluffs.  In addition, WPC created the 300-acre Wildflower Reserve at Raccoon Creek State Park, and added land to Blue Knob State Park.

The WPC also preserves Fallingwater®, the masterpiece home designed in 1935 by Frank Lloyd Wright for Edgar J. Kaufmann in Mill Run, Pennsylvania.  In 1963, Edgar Kaufmann jr. (sic) entrusted Fallingwater to the Conservancy.  Today, WPC continues its award winning preservation efforts and offers a wide variety of educational programs to more than 135,000 annual visitors.  The preservation of Fallingwater is a symbol of living in harmony with nature. 

Each year, WPC also partners with 5,000 volunteers and dozens of community organizations and businesses to plant and maintain more than 135 gardens and greening projects in 20 western Pennsylvania counties.

A high resolution photograph is available upon request.