Peterson Conservation Easement

Guemes Island

From the moment owner Paul Peterson laid eyes on “Middle Earth,” he knew this magic 10 acres of forest on Guemes Island deserved protection. The parcel of land held hundred-year-old cedar trees; unfortunately his plans were sidetracked when the infamous Arctic Express blew down nearly half of the trees on his property in 1990.  Heartbroken by the devastation, Peterson cleaned up and replanted, with help from his niece Paula Peterson and her children, Silas, Aaron and Joel.

“It’s my desire not only to protect the remaining old trees, buy to ensure that most of the trees Paula and I have planted will never be cut,” Peterson said about making the donation to the Preservation Trust.

The easement includes a 200-foot-wide “no-building” zone where the property abuts the SJPT-protected Hoffman Preserve, providing a generous buffer.  Trees over 24 inches in diameter may not be cut anywhere on the property in order to continue to create the conditions needed to re-establish old growth forest.