Rare Plant Rescue Gardens in Pennsylvania: A Budding Concept

While the Environmental Review process in Pennsylvania allows the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources to request avoidance of state listed plant species, the reality is that isn’t always possible. The Pennsylvania Plant Conservation Alliance (PPCA) is working with our partners at gardens and seed banks to pilot a new mitigation option involving ex situ conservation of to-be-impacted listed plants. Ex situ conservation can be an underutilized tool by consultants and practitioners, and PPCA hoping this effort will build connections across the conservation community as well as conserve plants that might otherwise be lost to development. We’ll share our methods for developing this program and hopefully solicit some feedback on this fledgling effort.