New game lands
added to Pike

By KRISTA GROMALSKI

PIKE COUNTY – In contrast to what some environmental activists call “the urban sprawl,” which continues to pop up along major roadways and throughout several townships in Pike County, the Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC) moved toward protecting a large tract of undeveloped land in the county.

The acquisition of a 1,425-acre property in Delaware Township marks a new game land, said PGC Press Secretary Jerry Feaser.

Designated as State Game Lands 327 and purchased from the Wildlands Conservancy for $569,920, the acreage will be “managed for wildlife… and open for public hunting or trapping.”

Based in Emmaus, the Wildlands Conservancy has played an important role in preserving lands for wildlife and outdoor recreation in eastern Pennsylvania, according to the PGC.

“The Wildlands Conservancy is in the business of preserving land,” said Dennis Collins, Wildlands Conservancy Land Protection director. “In providing these tracts to the game commission, we are confident that they will be managed professionally and with the utmost attention given to habitat improvements beneficial to wildlife.”

Feaser said the PGC’s management of the property might include a timber operation and food plant. “We [will] clear land to open up areas for new growth… and plant vegetation, such as clover and warm and cold season grasses, which are useful to wildlife.”

According to the PGC, the tract has an extensive wetlands complex, and was originally purchased by the Wildlands Conservancy for $650 per acre. The PCG is paying the Wildlands Conservancy only $400 per acre.

However, under state law, any single purchase by PGC that exceeds $300,000 must be authorized through PA’s capital budget appropriation process.

As the purchase price for the new game lands exceeds $300,000, the transaction must be approved by the PA General Assembly and Governor before being finalized.