April 22, 2025
For Immediate Release
Indiana Township, PA – At the end of March 2025, Allegheny Land Trust (ALT) purchased and successfully completed the 266-acre Deer Creek Conservation Project in Indiana Township directly adjacent to Emmerling Community Park, along Deer Creek and host to one mile of the Rachel Carson Trail. Ownership was immediately transferred to the Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC) for permanent conservation and management that supports wildlife habitat and wildlife focused recreation.
“We’re excited that our hard work with partners, community leaders, and neighbors resulted in the successful completion of this effort,” ALT Interim CEO Emilie Rzotkiewicz said. “Now this land, including one mile of the Rachel Caron Trail, will be protected for the benefit of generations to come.”
The Deer Creek Conservation Project now expands Emmerling Community Park to create 325-acre greenway. Through its permanent conservation, this land will conserve the quality of the Deer Creek – a PA Fish & Boat Commission stocked waterway – by continuing to absorb 231.12 million gallons of rainwater annually and will ensure maintained air quality by annually sequestering 1.13 million pounds of carbon and removing 20,000 pounds of other pollutants.
“In developed areas, where there often is decreasing wildlife habitat and growing numbers of people, conserving lands for wildlife and providing opportunities for the public to get out and enjoy it both are critically important,” said PGC Executive Director Steve Smith. “As a state game lands, the Deer Creek Conservation Project will be perpetually protected, checking both these boxes.”
The project received letters of support from PA State Senator Lindsey M. Williams, PA State Representative Mandy Steele, Indiana Township and the Rachel Carson Trail Conservancy (RCTC). More than 180 community members helped raise awareness and funds to match state level grants. PGC bolstered the project with a letter of support and a commitment letter to provide funding and assume ownership and stewardship once ALT completed the acquisition process.
“The RCTC has worked for years to find a way to protect this beautiful tract and is grateful to the ALT, the PGC, DCNR and the hiking community for this wonderful achievement. The Rachel Carson Trail was opened exactly 50 years ago and we’re looking forward to working with the PGC to ensure the trail continues to be a valuable regional asset for many decades to come,” said RCTC vice president Steve Mentzer.
PGC’s survey crew will begin marking the boundaries and develop parking areas to allow for better public access to the property.
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PROJECT LINK
https://live-allegheny-land-trust-2022.pantheonsite.io/deercreek/
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ABOUT ALLEGHENY LAND TRUST Allegheny Land Trust has helped local people save local land in the Pittsburgh region since 1993, and now conserves more than 4,000 acres across 41 municipalities. ALT’s mission is to conserve and care for local land for the health and well-being of future generations, and it envisions a resilient region with abundant green space that is easily accessible and recognized as essential to the quality of life for all.
ABOUT THE PA GAME COMMISSION For more than 100 years, the Game Commission has managed the Commonwealth’s wildlife resources for all Pennsylvanians. Its mission is to manage and protect wildlife and their habitats while promoting hunting and trapping for current and future generations, and it envisions being recognized and respected as the leader in innovative and proactive stewardship of wildlife and their habitats.
ABOUT RACHEL CARSON TRAIL CONSERVANCY The Rachel Carson Trails Conservancy, Inc. is a nonprofit 501(c)(3), volunteer-based organization dedicated to the development, protection, and promotion of hiking, biking, and walking trails throughout western Pennsylvania. The goals of the Rachel Carson Trails Conservancy include raising awareness of the benefits of community trails, getting more people interested in physical activities, getting more people to experience the beauty of our region and the natural world, and helping people see our region as active and vibrant. Join us in our efforts and help make a difference.