Associated Press

COLUMBIA — The South Carolina Conservation Bank plans to buy 26 properties totaling 31,600 acres this fiscal year.

The Department of Natural Resources says the bank's board approved the properties at its meeting earlier this month. The average cost per acre is $421.

The approvals include 160 acres added to Paris Mountain State Park north of Greenville.

The new properties will bring the total acreage conserved since the bank's 2002 creation to more than 247,700 across the state.

The bank's mission is to protect and preserve South Carolina's natural resources. It's funded through property transfer taxes, also called documentary stamps.

The Department of Natural Resources says revenue from that tax has steadily increased over the past year.