The 5th Annual Pennsylvania Land Conservation Conference attracted 320 attendees from across the Commonwealth and focused on some very serious issues impacting conservation.

The Pennsylvania Land Trust Association welcomed Christopher G. Miller, President of the Piedmont Environmental Council in Virginia, who addressed the new use of federal eminent domain to site high-voltage electric transmission lines across up to fifty Pennsylvania counties.

Miller said federal condemnation threatens landowners, scenic, historic, and natural landscapes; air quality (due to increased coal burning in the mid-west); and the implementation of sensible energy alternatives.

Under the 2005 Energy Policy Act, Congress has paved the way for new electric transmission lines across the Commonwealth by overriding some state-level authority, impact assessment requirements and planning for other alternatives. Decisions will be made shortly that will affect Pennsylvania for generations to come.

Miller said the threat to Pennsylvania is significant: two-thirds of the Commonwealth has been designated as part of the Mid-Atlantic National Electric Transmission Corridor. A Department of Energy may showing the 50 Pennsylvania counties included in the corridor is available on a special PLTA webpage. issued by the.

The Keynote Address entitled “A Good Planet is Hard to Find” was delivered by Larry Schweiger, President/CEO of the National Wildlife Federation and focused on climate change and what can be done on the local level.

Larry became President and Chief Executive Officer for the NWF in March 2004 with a commitment to confront global warming and to protect wildlife for our children’s future. Before that, Larry served for eight years as President and CEO of the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, working to save the most special places in Pennsylvania.

The conference also offered a comprehensive assortment of critical conservation and related topics for conservation and farmland preservation professionals, board members, landowners, planners and volunteers from all across the Commonwealth.

The Pennsylvania Land Conservation Conference was held May 10-12 at the Penn Stater Conference Center Hotel in State College. This event is Pennsylvania’s annual training, networking and inspirational event for those involved with private and public land conservation.

For more information, visit the PLTA website.

5/18/2007