Hurlbut and Patterson Farms Honored for Their Stewardship

Sharon Anderson
Watershed Steward

Claire Morehouse (second from right) with award recipients during the ceremony that honored her late husband David Morehouse.

Sylvia Hurlbut and Patterson Farms, both of Cayuga County, NY, were honored as the first recipients of the David Morehouse Memorial Award, presented at Lakefest 2003. The award recognizes leadership and commitment to protect the Cayuga Lake Watershed in honor of the late David Morehouse, a Town of Ledyard resident who dedicated many years of his life to improving water quality. Morehouse was a founding member of the two organizations that co-sponsored the award, the Cayuga Lake Watershed Network and the Cayuga Lake Watershed Intermunicipal Organization.

Sylvia Hurlbut was recognized for her sustained commitment to protecting the watershed and her effective leadership. Hurlbut organized the watershed’s 50 municipalities into the Cayuga Lake Watershed Intermunicipal Organization (IO), which created two guiding documents. The Cayuga Lake Preliminary Watershed Characterization detailed what is known about this area and the Cayuga Lake Watershed Restoration and Protection Plan set forth strategies and established priorities for protecting the watershed. She was instrumental in acquiring funding to support that process and implement some of the strategies.

During her tenure as Chair, Hurlbut supervised a number of consultants, kept the IO functioning effectively, and managed the funding very well. She was never afraid to tend to the little details and the hands-on work, either — running effective meetings that were fun to attend, telephoning town halls around the watershed to build support, and going to any event in the watershed that related to the IO’s work. She bartered her years of service in the community for the IO’s work involving dozens of contacts, friends, family and colleagues in fundraisers, celebrations, and donations.

After stepping down as Chair and as Ledyard Town Supervisor at the end of 2001, she has continued to act as the Town of Ledyard representative to the IO and to champion local water quality issues, such as pushing for action on a number of contaminated wells in the Ledyard area.

Patterson Farms in the Towns of Aurelius and Springport were recognized for their innovation and outreach to other agricultural producers concerning farm practices that protect water quality. In a watershed where the single largest land use is agriculture, farm practices can have a dramatic impact on water quality. Patterson Farms are proactive in protecting and improving environmental quality and committed to leaving the land and water better than they found it. They are concerned not only about what they do on their own property but also how they affect their downstream neighbors.

For the last 8 years they have been innovators in manure management, trying out and adopting new technologies, sharing their experience with other farmers, and working with Cornell University researcher Peter Wright, who disseminates the information widely. They have hosted farm tours for other agricultural producers, municipal officials, master compost volunteers, school groups and the general public.

Bob Ingraham of Cayuga County Soil and Water Conservation noted, “They are progressive, always paying attention and trying to do what’s right for the environment, even though it can be expensive.” Farm practices that protect the water quality can place a burden on a sector that historically has had a small profit margin. Since agriculture and its support industries are cornerstones of the local economy it is important that this large land-use be one of the many players in protecting our water resources. The Patterson Farms not only do their part, but they also are a model that clearly shows protecting the environment goes hand-in-hand with being a successful business.

Nominations for the David Morehouse Award are accepted annually by the Cayuga Lake Watershed Network.