“Buffer in a Bag” Stream Protection Program takes center stage on NYS DEC social media

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s Division of Lands and Forests has worked hard in 2020 to engage the public in planting stream buffers along New York’s tributaries.  Through the Buffer in a Bag program, which provides trees grown by the Colonel William F. Fox Memorial Saratoga Tree Nursery to eligible landowners, more than 250 residents have planted buffers along streams on their own properties.

Stream buffers provide essential ecosystem services such as erosion control, carbon sequestration, and wildlife habitat. The Buffer in a Big program benefits every New Yorker by improving water quality while also helping private landowners sustain their shoreline. To celebrate the NASF #CentennialChallenge, New York has highlighted 100 of our stream buffer plantings as a celebration of 100 years of forestry. Check out our centennial video here!