Pennsylvania DCNR Acquires 664-Acre Tract for Addition to Delaware State Forest

HARRISBURG, Pa., Oct. 5 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Department of Conservation and Natural Resources officials today hailed acquisition of 664 acres in Pike and Monroe counties that will serve as a vital connector to the Delaware State Forest and have long been popular with hunters, hikers and other outdoors enthusiasts.

Camp William Penn, purchased from the Philadelphia Industrial Development Authority, will be deeded to DCNR's Bureau of Forestry and will expand the Delaware State Forest to almost 85,000 acres.

"This timely, valuable purchase comes amid marked housing development in the northeastern region of the state, and more people turning to nearby public lands for recreation and relaxation," said Bureau of Forestry Director Daniel Devlin. "Although there are roughly 111,604 acres of state and federal land in Pike County -- roughly about 32 percent of the county – these lands are feeling the mounting pressure of surrounding development and increased use."

Originally owned by the City of Philadelphia, the camp and surrounding acreage is about eight miles north of Marshalls Creek, in Porter Township, Pike County, and Middle Smithfield and Price townships, Monroe County. Developed campgrounds encompass about 72 acres and contain 114 buildings, some dating back to the late 1920s.

The camp began as the Philadelphia-based Girard College Camp in 1929. Philadelphia purchased the property in 1952 and for many years operated a resident summer camp for children from low-income homes. Currently, DCNR is negotiating a campground lease with the YMCA of Philadelphia and Vicinity that would facilitate continuation of this service.

With its 7.2-acre lake, smaller pond, and scattered wetlands and small streams, Camp William Penn has been popular with naturalists and varied outdoors enthusiasts, and several roads and trails promote easy access, noted District Forester Nicholas Lylo.

"That tract has been used by hunters, hikers, nature watchers, and timber harvesters in the past," said Lylo, who oversees the Delaware and neighboring Lackawanna state forest districts. "These popular land uses -- along with angling, trapping, cross-county skiing, mountain biking, horse back riding, and other recreational opportunities -- will continue with DCNR's acquisition.

"This new addition is a critical corridor linking the Delaware State Forest at the Pike and Monroe county line, while also improving the administration, management and forest recreational opportunities for the forest user."  

Delaware State Forest, with its acreage now almost totaling 85,000, along with the neighboring Lackawanna State Forest and its 27,500 acres, are keystones in the Poconos Forests and Waters Conservation Landscape Initiative, one of seven major land preservation efforts under way across the state.

Regional in scope, CLIs partner local governments, conservancies and residents with the DCNR and other state departments in long-term planning and implementation that promotes sustainability, conservation, community revitalization and recreational projects.

"Conservation of the lands at Camp William Penn follows the recommendations of both the Pike and Monroe county open space plans and the goals of the Pocono Forest and Waters Conservation Landscape," said Ellen M. Ferretti, vice president of the Pennsylvania Environmental Council's Pocono Forest and Water Initiative. "Now that the forested acres of Camp William Penn will be conserved, the public can enjoy this wonderful place as part of the Delaware District of the Bureau of Forestry."

For information on the Delaware State Forest District, or any of Pennsylvania's 20 state forest districts, visit www.dcnr.state.pa.us. For details on the Pocono Forest and Waters and other conservation initiatives, visit www.dcnr.state.pa.us/cli.

Media contact: Terry Brady, 717-772-9101

SOURCE Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources