February 05, 2009 6:00 AM Kittery Land Trust protects 16 acres KITTERY, Maine — After a year of hard work and support from individuals and the town, the Kittery Land Trust has completed its first-ever capital campaign for the protection of 16 acres of land along Chauncey Creek. In December 2007, KLT purchased a conservation easement from Lincoln Fairchild to conserve 2,000 feet of shorefront along the creek. Since then, a campaign committee, headed by Ken Fellows, Debora Martin and Alex Dearborn, has raised $270,000 from individuals, the town and a federal grant to support the conservation project. With unaltered woodlands, sensitive wetlands and a rich intertidal zone, the Fairchild property provides valuable habitat for amphibians, waterfowl and migratory birds, said Fellows. The tall pines and steep slopes that line the shore provide a defining view of Kittery and the coast of Maine to those traveling near Chauncey Creek, he said. The Kittery Comprehensive Plan identified this property as one of the town's highest priorities for conservation. Fairchild, whose family has owned the property since the 1930s, could have subdivided the land, Fellows said. Instead, at a price below market value, he sold development rights to the Kittery Land Trust, which will hold the property for conservation purposes. More than half of the money needed for the Fairchild project was raised through the Mount Agamenticus to the Sea Conservation Initiative, a collaboration of 10 local, state and federal conservation groups focused on protecting important open spaces between Mount Agamenticus and Gerrish Island. "KLT couldn't have succeeded as quickly as it did without the important early contribution we had from the town," said Fellows. "When the Town Council unanimously voted to direct $50,000 from the Open Space fund for this effort, we knew we were off to a great start." People from Kittery and beyond donated an additional $145,000, and KLT received $75,000 from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service through the North American Wetlands Conservation Act. "I am so proud of our board, volunteers, and the entire community for stepping up to protect one of the most beautiful and ecologically significant places in Kittery. Even in these hard times, people care about the future and know that conservation is forever," said KLT president Melissa Paly.