BRUNSWICK

The application process took almost three years and required compilation of 44 pounds of tangible information and a similar amount of digitized documents, but the Brunswick- Topsham Land Trust learned this past week that it has been awarded national accreditation for its conservation efforts.

Recognition by the Land Trust Accreditation Commission, based in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., places the local land trust in relatively rare company. Since 2008, only 181 land trust organizations, of more than 1,700 in the country, have received such status.

The commission is an independent arm of the Land Trust Alliance, which itself was established in 1982 in Washington, D.C., to spearhead and coordinate nationwide preservation of raw land.

Being recognized nationally lends another level of credibility to BTLT’s efforts. More than the award itself, however, the process of applying for it helped Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust to refine its direction and mission, said associate director Caroline Eliot.

“The board decided to use it as a tool for organizational development, and the accreditation process really was a road map for that,” Eliot said.

Among the new standards BTLT created for itself are more stringent financial management and accounting, increased frequency of audits, how meetings are conducted and implementation of new policies governing board members’ behavior.

In all, 15 new policies were adopted.

“The Land Trust Alliance has created a whole series of standards and practices which are key for a local land trust to have,” Eliot added. “The goal is to conduct business in a way to ensure the units that you hold will be managed well in perpetuity because, you know, forever is a long time.”

In 2016, the process will start again, as land trusts undergo reaccreditation every five years.