Rector man reappointed to land trust
Outdoors enthusiast Mike Kuzemchak started his career teaching elementary school students about the ecology of the Chesapeake Bay.
Years later, his passion for the environment is thriving in the Laurel Highlands.
After a two-year hiatus, Kuzemchak, 46, of Rector has been reappointed to the Westmoreland Land Trust, an independent, nonprofit, volunteer organization that strives to preserve land of special value to the community. Kuzemchak is the Laurel Highlands program director for the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy.
“I think Westmoreland County, particularly Ligonier Valley, still has such great natural resources,” he said. “We still have fairly clean water, forests, beautiful open spaces. I think it's important to protect those things.”
Kuzemchak graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania with a bachelor's degree in secondary English education in 1989.
“The first job I got out of college was at an environmental education center in Maryland,” he said. “The education degree led to that job, but that job also opened the door to a career in conservation and the outdoors.”
He then worked for Indiana County Parks as projects coordinator, writing grant applications and seeking funding for projects such as construction of the Hoodlebug Trail.
“When I started, it was just an old railroad biking trail,” he said. “The park staff and people in the community wanted to convert it into a hiking and biking trail because it went from Indiana along Route 119 down into Homer City, so there were a lot of people living there who could just go out their back doors and have a bike trail right there.”
In 2004, Kuzemchak joined the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, where he works to protect key land parcels throughout the Laurel Highlands. A year later, the Indiana County native, his wife Diana and sons, Hayden and Andrew, moved to Rector, a short commute away from his office on West Main Street in Ligonier.
Kuzemchak's project area encompasses the Ligonier Valley, where some of the conservancy's earliest easements were fashioned in the 1970s.
“They were actually some of the earliest conservation easements in the whole country,” he said.
The pioneering concept was simple.
“The landowner retains ownership of the property but they enter into an agreement with us, the conservancy, to limit future use of the property,” Kuzemchak said. “So if someone owns 100 acres and they want to see that property stay in a fairly natural state, we will work out an agreement, essentially deed restrictions on the property, and they are voluntary. (The landowners) want to see their property protected.”
Ligonier Valley has the highest concentration of such easements in Western Pennsylvania, he said. They include Powdermill Nature Reserve and the Tubmill Creek Watershed.
“Our role is to uphold those restrictions,” he said. “Some properties have changed hands numerous times over the years, but the restrictions don't change. Our role is to stay in touch with whoever owns the property. We visit every property every year to make sure those restrictions are still being upheld.”
Kuzemchak hopes to help the Westmoreland Land Trust continue its mission of protecting land and preserving natural beauty.
Since forming in 2007, the trust's projects have included preserving sites in Greensburg, Murrysville, Rostraver and along Route 30 in Ligonier Township. Kuzemchak previously served on the board from 2008 to 2012.
Shaun Fenlon, vice president of the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy for land conservation, said Kuzemchak, a good listener who excels at solving problems, is a good fit for the trust.
“He's just very passionate about land conservation,” he said. Kuzemchak will serve on the trust's stewardship committee, which ensures properties are properly used and maintained.
Chuck Duritsa, chairman of the trust, said he looks forward to Kuzemchak again contributing his “superior knowledge” of land conservation. “He's just the type of person we want on our board because of his work experience,” he said.
Kuzemchak is glad to help.
“I like contributing to continuing the tradition of land conservation, adding to what's already been done, seeing the impacts and playing a role in keeping the Valley such a nice place,” he said.
Nicole Chynoweth is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. She can be reached at 724-850-2862 or nchynoweth@tribweb.com.
