Conservation

I am frequently asked, “How is Martha’s Vineyard different from so many other vacation destinations?” As I search my mile long mental list, there is one piece that shines through every time. The Vineyard community gives back. Via the organization of and participation in glitzy fundraising extravaganzas like Houses on the Tube, small intimate wine & dinner events, private donations to local non-profits, generous land conservation gifts and more.

To live on the Vineyard is to love the island deeply - land, water, landmarks, people, restaurants, farms, sunsets, arts, delicacies. And our home owners understand on a visceral level that they play an integral part in sustaining this lifestyle that they love.

Without land conservation and wetlands protection, there will be nowhere safe to swim. The artists will not survive without support, the farms will not offer off-the-vine snap peas that taste like they’ve been marinated in syrup, the lobster will not melt in our mouths.

I love the work I do. I can’t think of anything better than sharing this island, supporting my community and supporting others in doing the same. The Vineyard offers views like nowhere else, the Vineyard offers a lifestyle found nowhere else, Vineyarders give like no one else.

The land of Martha’s Vineyard is precious. And the fact that so many people know this is both a curse and a blessing. The curse is simple: the more people that love this island and want to live here, the more homes that are built and the more land that is taken from its natural state. The blessing is also simple: good people come to this island, they love & support this island and they become part of the larger community.

Many of these people, over the years, have been forward thinking about how to pull these two sides together - one solution is the Martha’s Vineyard Land Bank Commission. “The land bank is a rare breed. Neither a sanctuary program nor a park system, it is a middle ground where the highest virtues of conservation can be realized: public enjoyment of nature, where limits and restraint secure the natural world’s future and prosperity.” (from the Land Bank’s website)

In essence, the Land Bank works like this. For every real estate transaction on the island, land or home, the buyer pays an additional 2% of the total price to the Land Bank. In turn, the Land Bank uses that capital to purchase and preserve undeveloped land on the island. The land bank, with the help of private conservation entities on the island, has a diverse mission and is able to reserve properties for wildlife, agriculture, hunting and/or many other types of conservation use. Of course, environmental protection tops the list of land bank goals and public use is encouraged wherever and whenever it’s possible.

I work closely with the Land Bank and have a thorough knowledge of the processes and procedures involved in purchasing property on the island. Walking you through these steps and sharing the importance of the Land Bank to our Vineyard community is integral to the process of working with Suzanne Lanzone & Daughters and essential to the conservation of our island home.

In a poignant editorial, Brendan O’Neill - the executive director of the Vineyard Conservation Society - points out the severity of the land conservation versus development issue on the island. While over the last 100 years, about one third of the Island’s 60,000 acres have become legally protected as conservation land, another third remains unprotected.

O’Neill writes, ‘The dilemma is that not all the land that needs to be protected can be saved in time. The rate at which land is being developed is far outpacing the rate at which it is being conserved. In a build-out scenario under existing zoning, this could translate into several thousand new houses, a doubling of the year-round population, a spike in the summer population, and the necessity of providing the roads, sewers, municipal buildings and other infrastructure required to support a larger community.’

His call to action is for landowners to act, designating their private land for conservation restriction. He states that, “More than five thousand acres of private land have been protected by landowners in recent decades. That’s almost a quarter of the inventory of conservation land on the Island. Now is the time to repeat that feat.”

The steps to securing conservation land on the island are complicated involving donations, IRS rules and island government regulations - but they are entirely navigable and strategically put in place to help the island.

I am proud to be an expert in the fiduciary, legal and community procedures for land conservation on the Vineyard. And, I educate my clients on the benefits of land protection for themselves, for the island, for the world…and for the lifestyle of the Vineyard that we cherish.

O’Neill passionately includes, “There is general agreement that much of the Island’s remaining unprotected open land should be conserved if we wish to keep our water bodies, prime farm soils, scenic vistas, buffers around the Great Ponds and core wildlife habitat areas intact.”

And he quotes the founder of the Vineyard Conservation Society, Richard Pough, “If the natural beauty of Martha’s Vineyard is to be preserved, it will be the result of the combined action of the Vineyard landowners.” What was right on 40 years ago, stands true today.

Building green is extremely popular on the island as we all work to be a sustainable and environmentally careful community. And, one of the biggest trends of late? Composting toilets.

I’m guessing that toilets are one of those things that you, like me, take for granted. But sure enough, they are an issue. From septic systems to water pollution, regular old toilets are wreaking havoc on Martha’s Vineyard and around the world.

Without getting too graphic, there is a wonderful company located in Massachusetts that  installs and maintains composting toilets - and apparently, it’s a breeze. They look ‘almost’ like regular toilets and can be found in multi-million dollar homes around the island, thanks to South Mountain Company, in particular.

The waste is composted into dirt by some friendly and useful worms. No water is involved and a useful fan pull any and all odors straight down. This last piece is a big selling point, personally.

What do you think? Composting toilets in your house? Read more here if you’re interested.

As we near election day, I’m paying attention to the things that made the campaign different and full of change. And it’s always a great surprise when the Martha’s Vineyard community is part of the effort.

At the 2008 Democratic National Convention in Denver, CO, the Democrats held a symposium on all things green, environmentally friendly, alternative energy and sustainable. A Martha’s Vineyard company, EcoMV and its founder and president, Mark Martin, were chosen to both present at the event and provide products to make the convention as green as possible.

EcoMV’s on-island shop, the Bio Store, carries only products that are tried, tested and deemed eco-friendly. These products range from home and personal cleaning, toys, clothes and dishware made primarily of bamboo and help - two materials recognized for their green growing habits (can exist on rain water and grow like weeds) and their sustainability. One of their best efforts to date involves compostable to-go plates, cups, tops, bowls and flatware - which they’ve successfully filled many island restaurants with at this point. They, and we, are hoping for a full sweep by next summer.

At the DNC, Eco MV supplied many of these products and Mark presented and advised the DNC and participants based on his success assimilating green products into the mainstream.

He was quoted in the MVTimes, “We would like to present the Island as an example of what a community can do if they take a personal interest and work together to help the environment. We will be approaching other local groups and businesses to be part of our involvement with the DNC. We want this to become a collaborative event, because it has the potential to make the Island a benchmark for other communities and bring people to the Island, because they know we are an eco-conscientious community.”

Music to my ears - Martha’s Vineyard on the national stage because of our community commitment to sustainability and responsibility to our land, people and planet.