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9:30 p.m., Dec. 12, 2002--The Welfare Foundation has donated 31 acres of land south of the Chesapeake & Delaware Canal to the University of Delaware to augment the operations of the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources’ farm, UD President David P. Roselle announced Thursday, Dec. 12, at the semiannual meeting of the University’s Board of Trustees. In addition to the gift, the private foundation has extended UD a long-term lease on an adjacent 200 acres. The new site is expected to benefit the University’s agricultural research because the land in southern New Castle County more closely resembles most other Delaware farmland than does the current UD farm on the Newark campus.
“The University is grateful to the Welfare Foundation for its generosity, foresight and continued support of our educational mission,” Roselle said. “The students and faculty of the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources now will have a new environment to assess products, demonstrate conservation and natural-resource management and educate Delawareans about the importance of agriculture in their lives.”
There is no intention to move the dairy herd or other livestock, existing research plots or the teaching and research functions in which students and faculty regularly participate away from the Newark farm. The new site will provide additional or alternative cropland for some of the college’s farming operations.
Robin W. Morgan, dean of the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, said the new acreage is an important resource because the existing UD farm is at capacity and because the location of the new land complements other farm properties of the college.
“The location is ideal for serving the needs of the local agricultural community, as well as other educational institutions in the state,” Morgan said. “It will provide us with a demonstration site for new, high-value crops for Delaware and numerous other projects.”
She said the land could serve as a research and demonstration site for sustainable agricultural practices, soil conservation, biofuel plantations and turf grass. Other possible uses include plots for master gardeners and an outdoor woodland classroom.
The Welfare Foundation is a local, private, charitable foundation established in 1930 to support local charitable, educational and scientific organizations. The land that has been donated and leased to the University is part of the foundation’s 2,000-acre Whitehall Parcel and is located just south of the C&D Canal opposite Summit Airport.
Article by Ann Manser
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