Trent River Preserve

North Carolina Coastal Land Trust purchased a 113-acre property adjacent to the Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Cherry Point’s Outlying Landing Field Oak Grove in Jones County in August 2023. The property consists of farmland as well as bottomland hardwood wetlands along the Trent River. The military contributed 50% of the funds needed for the acquisition. In exchange, the property will have permanent restrictions on residential and commercial development but allow for continued use of the land for farming, forestry and conservation projects. This acquisition represents the 17th project completed by Coastal Land Trust in partnership with MCAS Cherry Point with the dual goal of conserving open space and/or natural habitats and minimizing encroachment adjacent to military installations.

Recognizing the growing development pressure around many of the country’s military installations and possible impacts on military readiness and the ability to train the troops, Congress granted authority to the Department of Defense (DoD) in 2003 to work with local and state governments and non-governmental organizations to help buffer key military training areas from future encroachment and to provide cost-sharing for land conservation through the Readiness and Environmental Protection Initiative (REPI) program. In 2004, the Coastal Land Trust and MCAS Cherry Point signed a Memorandum of Understanding to work together to conserve key tracts of land with military and conservation values around the main base in Havelock (Craven County) as well as outlying fields in Carteret and Jones Counties, i.e., the Piney Island Bombing Target and Outlying Landing Fields at Bogue and Oak Grove. To date, this partnership has resulted in over 12,000-acres of land with military and conservation values preserved. Coastal Land Trust’s ability to raise private and public grant funds for land conservation has helped leverage DOD REPI funds for these projects at a minimum of 1:1; an overall win for both the military and the environment.

While the 113-acre property recently acquired lies in rural Jones County, it is only minutes from the new U.S. Highway 17 Bypass around Pollocksville. “When the For Sale signs started going up on this property, we decided to take action. Due to the extensive road frontage associated with this property, we knew it was only a matter of time before numerous lots would be sold and homes would be constructed adjacent to Oak Grove,” stated Janice Allen, Director of Land Protection for the Coastal Land Trust. “The threat of development raised the priority of this project for REPI funding,“ said Rhonda Murray, Community Plans and Liaison Officer at MCAS Cherry Point, “this outlying field is a critical military training asset.” The 976-acre Outlying Landing Field Oak Grove is used by both MCAS Cherry Point and New River Air Station for training pilots to land aircraft on unimproved surfaces in a reduced visibility area. Currently, helicopter and tilt-rotor aircraft training takes place at Oak Grove. Development of this 113-acre property may have resulted in restrictions on timing, frequency, and the type of training that occurs at Oak Grove.

The Coastal Land Trust will retain the Trent River property and manage it as a preserve. For the near term, most of the open land will continue to be farmed. Future plans, as funding allows, may include planting longleaf pine, creating a pollinator meadow, and/or enhancing the small ponds on the property to improve habitat for native wildlife.

The Coastal Land Trust thanks the MCAS Cherry Point for its continued partnership, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Harold H. Bate Foundation for funding assistance with this project. The Bate Foundation provided a grant that covered a majority of the Coastal Land Trust’s transactional expenses (e.g., survey, title work, legal and closing costs) associated with the closing. “We are glad to have contributed funds to this excellent project that supports the Coastal Land Trust as well as the military’s objectives. We hope to provide more grants for projects in Jones County, said Don Brinkley of the Harold H. Bate Foundation.