Conservation and ASWP

Conservation is part and parcel of ASWP's mission to "inspire and educate the citizens of western Pennsylvania to be respectful, responsible stewards of the natural world."

One of the first conservation projects administered by ASWP was the Western Pennsylvania Coal Study, conducted in the 1980s. Requests for this valuable information continue today from professionals and Universities working in several different ecological arenas.

Audubon Center for Native Plantsis an ASWP initiative which seeks to promote the use of native plants in the landscape. The program was initiated nearly 20 years ago by a dedicated group of volunteers. Tens of thousand plants are propagated onsite in the facility and distributed throughout western Pennsylvania through public sales and organizational pre-orders.

While ASWP has been a steward of its land for over six decades, the past 10 years have marked a significant change in its land protection campaign. ASWP has added 158 acres to Todd Nature Reserve and has secured permanent protection of an additional 134 acres via conservation easement. These additions increase ASWP's land protection and stewardship in the Buffalo Creek Valley from 176 to 468 acres.