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News Items 2010 JULY Third easement complete on Cottonwood Ranches JUNE Sommers-Grindstone conserves nearly 19,000 acres Driskill Family welcomes board members to ranch Options for working ranches discussed during community conversation MAY Johnson County landowners conserve historic ag lands Encana invests in ranching's future Board member testifies for House Ag Committee APRIL Partnership protects sage grouse habitat, ag land Conservation easements in Wyoming: Not one size fits all MARCH Conservation easement funding signed by Governor FEBRUARY Funding Up For Approval with State Legislature JANUARY Wyoming Land Trust Conserves 3,800 Acres of Ranchlands in 2009 Storer Foundation Renews Support 2009 DECEMBER Lander Conservation Easement Finalized Wyo. Stock Growers Ag Land Trust and Partners awarded $730,000 NOVEMBER OCTOBER Maintaining the Range: Fall 2009 Newsletter SEPTEMBER AUGUST JULY WSGALT Partners on Cottonwood Ranches Project |
Future of ranch secured through easement, bequest for young ranchers program SHERIDAN COUNTY, WYO. – More than 1,000 acres of working ranchland will remain forever in agriculture thanks to a recently closed conservation easement and bequest of the ranch to the Wyoming Stock Growers Agricultural Land Trust.
The Kusel Ranch purchased conservation easement closed the end of June and protects 1,050 acres just west of Sheridan. The scenic ranch is located along the eastern front of the Bighorn Mountain Range, with Soldier Creek drainage running through it. Owned by Fred Kusel and his sister Catherine Kusel, the ranch lies in an area that has experienced an explosion of rural development in recent years. The siblings entered into the easement to help ensure the operation will continue as a viable ranch and habitat for wildlife. “We have felt for a long time that we needed to protect agricultural lands from development,” Catherine Kusel said. “The more land in development, the less land that is available for food production and future generations.” The purchased conservation easement is a legal, voluntary agreement a landowner makes to permanently restrict the type and amount of development that occurs on his or her property. It is held and monitored by the Stock Growers Ag Land Trust. Funders include the Natural Resources Conservation Service Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program (NRCS FRPP) and the Wyoming Wildlife and Natural Resources Trust (WWNRT). The Kusels generously contributed more than 25 percent of the value of the conservation easement. “The Kusel Conservation Easement is another fantastic example of how NRCS Farm Bill programs, in concert with the Stock Growers Ag Land Trust’s commitment to preserving working agriculture operations, provides extraordinary benefits to Wyoming,” NRCS State Conservationist Xavier Montoya said. “We are fortunate to have a level of FRPP funding that can support many excellent projects. The NRCS looks forward to further growing our very successful partnership in support of conservation easements in our great state.” The property lies along Soldier Creek and contains productive irrigated fields and rolling upland shrub steppe. The protection of the Kusel Ranch will help to ensure the continued agricultural viability and habitat values of this spectacular corridor between mountains and plains. “The Kusels have taken a monumental step in ensuring their ranch remains a ranch,” Stock Growers Ag Land Trust Field Representative Leah Burgess said. “Not only have they protected the land base for agriculture and open space, they have ensured that the property will continue to be operated as a working ranch through their bequest to the Land Trust.” The ranch location near the Bighorn National Forest plays a key role in providing an undeveloped buffer for the public lands to the west. The riparian areas include a diverse population of trees and plants and are home to amphibians, waterfowl and other aquatic and riparian-dwelling species. The irrigated meadows and native rangelands contain elk and pronghorn migration corridors, and provide ample habitat for a host of other wildlife species, including deer, moose, small mammals, raptors and songbirds. The protection of the Kusel Ranch will help to conserve agricultural productivity and wildlife habitat by expanding this contiguity of open spaces which include both privately and federally managed lands. As encroachment from Sheridan westward continues, places like the Kusel property are becoming increasingly important for wildlife populations. “If you stand on the hills of the Kusel place and look west there is nothing but the wide-open space all the way to the top of the mountains,” WWNRT Board Member Hardy Tate said. “As I was growing up on a ranch just west of the Kusel place, I didn't realize how special that open space was. I have really come to appreciate how rare and valuable this contiguous open area on the face of the mountains is to future generations. It will be a very lucky family that gets to continue the Kusel ranching operation after they are gone.” The Kusel family has ranched on their land since 1910 and Fred and sister Catherine have owned and operated the cattle and hay operation since 1967. In creating their estate plans the Kusel siblings wanted to ensure their ranch remains a working operation and the property will serve as a “start-up opportunity” for young ranchers. With this in mind, they named the Stock Growers Ag Land Trust as beneficiary to the ranch. Due to the Kusel’s foresight in their estate planning, the Stock Growers Ag Land Trust, along with Encana Oil & Gas and several private donors have launched a feasibility study to establish the Ranchland Succession Program. The goal of the project is to establish viable models that can be used to transfer land to beginning producers, ensuring the intent of the bequest can be honored. “Fred and Catherine’s legacy gift of their ranch is an extraordinary example of the concern many landowners have for the future of agriculture in Wyoming,” Stock Growers Ag Land Trust Executive Director Pamela Dewell said. “We are honored they chose our land trust to ensure their property is conveyed to a young ranching family after the Kusels have passed away.”
Third easement complete on Cottonwood Ranches DANIEL, WYO. – Local rancher Freddie Botur, The Conservation Fund and the Wyoming Stock Growers Agricultural Land Trust announced today the protection of nearly 1,800 acres on Botur’s Cottonwood Ranches that preserves the family’s legacy of ranching and enhances habitat for a number of wildlife species. The land is protected through a conservation easement, a legal, voluntary agreement a landowner makes to permanently restrict the type and amount of development that occurs on his or her property. The easement protects eight miles of Cottonwood Creek and crucial winter range for moose, mule deer and elk, as well as an important migration corridor for pronghorn antelope.
“Cottonwood Ranches has been proud to work with the Stock Growers Ag Land Trust and The Conservation Fund over the last three years,” said Freddie Botur. “Together we have put into conservation more than 4,000 acres of prime riparian habitat to aid in the mitigation of oil and gas impacts in Wyoming. With the conservation of those lands and the support from the Jonah Interagency Office, tens of thousands of acres of important upland rangeland have been effectively supported for the good of the land, the wildlife and the ranch. As a rancher I am also grateful for these efforts to balance the development of our resources with the preservation of the agricultural stewardship that is so important to our communities all across Wyoming.” The Conservation Fund and the Stock Growers Ag Land Trust have been working with the Botur family for three years and have completed two other conservation easements on the Cottonwood Ranches. Together the three easements protect more than 4,600 acres. Funding for the purchase of the easement came from the Jonah Interagency Office, the Wyoming Wildlife and Natural Resources Trust and the Wyoming Governor’s Big Game Licenses Coalition. “Our team is proud to work with the Botur family, The Conservation Fund and the Wyoming Stock Growers Agricultural Land Trust on protecting a third portion of the Cottonwood Ranches in the Green River valley,” said John MacDonald of the Jonah Interagency Office. “Through this model collaboration, and with mitigation funding contributed by Encana and BP, we are protecting valuable wildlife habitat, preserving Wyoming’s strong ranching history and mitigating the impacts from nearby oil and gas development.” “The easement on the Cottonwood Ranches ensures that the property will forever be used as a working ranch and combines with adjacent public and private protected land to create an 18-mile stretch of North and South Cottonwood creeks” said Luke Lynch, Wyoming state director for The Conservation Fund. “The Boturs are incredible stewards of the land and we are grateful to them – and all of our partners – for their continued commitment to conserving Wyoming’s natural heritage.” “We commend the Botur family for their vision to protect and enhance Cottonwood Ranches for present and future generations,” said Leah Burgess, field representative for Wyoming Stock Growers Agricultural Land Trust. “The partnership between The Conservation Fund, Wyoming Stock Growers Agricultural Land Trust and the Jonah Interagency Office has now resulted in five properties and over 7,435 acres of agriculturally productive and ecologically diverse land conserved in the Upper Green River Valley.” # # # About The Conservation Fund
Click here to see more current and historical photos of the Sommers-Grindstone Conservation Project. Extensive Wyoming land conservation project conserves nearly 19,000 acres UPPER GREEN RIVER VALLEY, WYO. - A massive land-protection agreement in Sublette County closed Thursday, conserving nearly 19,000 acres of historic agricultural land, critical wildlife habitat and iconic view sheds. The Sommers Grindstone Conservation Project is one of the most extensive private lands conservation efforts in Wyoming’s history and includes four separate conservation easements and public fishing access on nearly five miles of the Green River.
The landmark agreements of the Sommers-Grindstone project were made possible by the vision of landowners Albert Sommers, his sister Jonita Sommers and Maggie Miller of Grindstone Cattle Co. The project is a partnership between the landowners, the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission and the Wyoming Stock Growers Agricultural Land Trust. “This easement will allow the land to remain undeveloped, which is a benefit to cattle and wildlife, and it will allow us to pass our ranch along to another generation of ranchers,” Albert Sommers said. “We are trying to create a future for this ranch.” The Sommers siblings decided to put their ranch under a conservation easement after their mother passed away in 2006. Neither Albert nor Jonita have children to continue their cow/calf, yearling and native hay operation and they wanted to better ensure their land would remain in agriculture. “We’re basically tying up the development value of the land and leaving the ag and wildlife values,” Albert said. “Regardless of what happens in the future the land will be available for ranching.”
Maggie Miller of Grindstone Cattle Co. joined the Sommers’ to also conserve her ranch and protect it from development. “When I first came to Wyoming, I thought the land was so incredibly beautiful,” Miller said. “Ranches are disappearing and so is the wildlife. This is a big outfit, mostly contiguous with BLM and state land, and this was a great opportunity to conserve it.” An extensive group of funders, including both private and public agencies, joined in support of the Sommers-Grindstone conservation project. Project funders include the Pinedale Anticline and Jonah Field mitigation funds (JIO & PAPO), Natural Resources Conservation Service, Wyoming Wildlife and Natural Resource Trust, Wyoming Game and Fish Commission, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Landowner Incentive Grant Program, Walmart Acres for America through the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative through the Bureau of Land Management, Doris Duke Charitable Trust through the Nature Conservancy, Turner Foundation, Wyoming Governor’s Big Game License Coalition, Wildlife Heritage Foundation of Wyoming, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, and the Mule Deer Foundation, as well as a significant contribution from the landowners. "This project represents a unique private land-wildlife habitat conservation and public access partnership. The collaboration among the landowners and other partners involved in this project, and their desire to conserve agricultural land and wildlife habitat, and provide high-quality public fishing access on the Green River, is impressive. The Wyoming Game and Fish Commission and Department is proud to be a part of this outstanding partnership," John Kennedy, Wyoming Game and Fish Department deputy director, said. A major portion of funding for the Sommers-Grindstone easements was the result of contributions from oil and gas companies as mitigation for development within the Jonah Infill Drilling Project and the Pinedale Anticline Oil and Gas Project. Encana and BP are the major contributors to the JIO fund while Questar, Shell, and Ultra are the primary contributors to the PAPO fund. “Western ranchland is disappearing and with it important wildlife habitat. Partnerships between government agencies, willing ranchers and conservation groups are increasingly important to the future of this habitat,” John MacDonald, Bureau of Land Management acting project coordinator with JIO/PAPO, said.
The JIO was created by the Jonah Project Record of Decision to provide overall management of field monitoring and mitigation activities, both on- and off-site. PAPO was created by the Anticline Project Record of Decision to provide overall management of on-site monitoring and off-site mitigation activities. The PAPO obtains, collects, stores and distributes monitoring information to support the adaptive management process and analyzes mitigation projects primarily focusing on mule deer, pronghorn and Greater sage-grouse. “This is the most complex private lands conservation project to date in Wyoming and was possible only with the support of many organizations,” Pamela Dewell, Wyoming Stock Growers Ag Land Trust executive director, said. “It is an extraordinary example of how the conservation of working ranchlands can help mitigate the effects of energy development and rapid growth. Nearly 19,000 acres will forever remain a part of our working landscape, available to wildlife migrations and breeding grounds and the provision of food, fiber and other natural resources to future generations. We are deeply appreciative of the landowners’ foresight and generosity.” The easements lie at two critical locations along the Green River in northern Sublette County and serve as important corridor and buffer areas between the Bridger Teton National Forest and the Green River. Two of the easements provide an immense, unbroken landscape between two large tracts of Bureau of Land Management land. They are also located along the west side of the Pinedale Anticline natural gas field. Conservation attorney Larry Kueter represented the Wyoming Stock Growers Agricultural Land Trust in the transaction. A board member of both the Land Trust Alliance and the Partnership of Rangeland Trusts, he discussed the project from his Denver office, "This transaction was particularly challenging for how many different parties had to come together, but it happened pretty seamlessly. It was very rewarding to be part of protecting something as special as these properties." The cattle ranches are comprised of hay meadows, riparian areas, a diverse population of tree stands, upland areas, sagebrush and high-prairie-grass areas and wetlands. The agricultural land provides important habitat and vital migration corridors for deer, antelope, elk and moose. The riparian areas are home to nesting song birds, raptors, waterfowl, shorebirds, sandhill cranes and blue herons. Additionally, the ranches and surrounding areas host sage grouse leks and protective habitat for the species. “This project represents the dedication of multi-generational Wyoming ranch families to maintain habitat for wildlife and to maintain a future for agriculture in Wyoming,” Bob Budd, Wyoming Wildlife and Natural Resource Trust executive director, said. “This is a model for how truly great things can happen if we dream big and think outside the box.” At the request of the landowners, the Sommers-Grindstone conservation project includes a public fishing access easement on the Green River. The area will be walking and boat access to nearly five miles of the river. “Our family has always allowed fishing on our property,” Albert said. “With more and more ranches being bought as fishing estates, we wanted to include the access to continue our legacy of allowing the public to fish.” The landowners intend the fishing access and the protected open spaces to benefit the entire Upper Green River Valley community. Generations to come will see the vistas and a portion of the valley just as settlers did more than 100 years ago.
In addition to the fishing access, the landowners also chose to transfer the mineral rights on a portion of the property to the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission. This is intended to help protect the surface from mineral development, while still allowing for the development of the minerals through such technologies as directional drilling. Adding to the agricultural and wildlife benefits of the Sommers-Grindstone project, these easements play a significant role in preserving unique features of the Cowboy State’s history and culture. The ranches were homesteaded in the late 1800s and early 1900s and were a central part of the area’s development. There are significant archeological and cultural resources on the ranch including tepee rings, a medicine wheel and historic ranch buildings. The historic Sommers’ ranch house and bridge across the Green River are on the National Register of Historic Places. “When you have so much history on a piece of land you feel very connected,” Albert said. “How this land will be treated in the future is very important to my sister and me.” “I hope this becomes one of the more appreciated open-space projects,” Miller said. “It provides great benefits to the land, agriculture, wildlife and our community. I hope it’s appreciated and inspirational to others to continue doing similar things.”
Driskill Family welcomes board members to ranch The Campstool Ranch, established in 1882, has been operated by six generations of the Driskill family. In mid-June, the entire clan welcomed the boards of directors of both the Wyoming Stock Growers Agricultural Land Trust and the Wyoming Wildlife and Natural Resource Trust, as well as many friends and neighbors, for a whole-hog barbecue and tour of their historic ranch.
Executive Director Pamela Dewell welcomed everyone to the barbecue on behalf of the Stock Growers Ag Land Trust and thanked family members Ogden and Zannie, their daughter Andrea who organized the event, brother Matt and his wife Kathi, and dad Jesse.
Options for working ranches disscussed during community conversation The Wyoming Stock Growers Agricultural Land Trust was well represented during the May 26 Voices of the Valley community conversation series. Executive Director Pamela Dewell was part of a panel that presented 'Conservation Options for Working Ranches'. Dewell presented the activities and accomplishments of the Stock Growers Ag Land Trust, gave an overview of conservation easements and an anatomy of a purchased easement deal, and discussed the challenges, opportunities and importance of conserving agricultural lands in Wyoming. The panel also included Bob Berger, an attorney for Lonabaugh and Riggs, LLP, Glen Leavengood of the Saratoga Encampment Rawlins Conservation District, Rick Pallister of the Rocky Mountian Elk Foundation. Click here for the Saratoga Sun article on the panel. Upcoming Voices of the Valley Events Voices of the Valley will wrap up their community conversation series with a Community Celebration from 6-9 p.m., June 23 at the Platte Valley Community Center. The celebration will feature food, live music and the North Platte Valley area photo contest. The final Voices of the Valley event will take the conversation outdoors for Field Days at Indian Rocks Ranch on June 26-27. The public is invited to attend and participate as we learn about the natural and biological resources and agricultural productivity of a private, conserved working ranch. For more information about this event and to RSVP, click here.
Johnson County landowners conserve historic ag lands CHEYENNE – Concerned about the threat of prime, agricultural landscapes being gobbled up by development, two Johnson County landowners took steps to save their iconic Wyoming ranch lands. Marking the first Johnson County conservation easements held by the Wyoming Stock Growers Agricultural Land Trust, Kevin and Judy Lund donated 2,240 acres comprising Powder River Ranch and Fourmile Creek Ranch east of Kaycee. “Much of our river acreage is prime development land and we wanted to make sure it stayed a ranch forever,” Judy Lund said. “Keeping the land as a ranch is what we work toward and what we have achieved through this easement.”
The newly conserved ranch lands have been in the Lund family for more than 70 years, and are home to many interesting natural, agricultural and historical features. The productive cow/calf operation supports a diverse variety of domestic stock including cattle, horses, sheep, goats and the occasional yak. It is also land that has impacted dozens of lives. “It’s amazing to stop and think about how many lives this place has touched,” Kevin Lund said. “Families used to send their kids to work on the ranch. Until my folks passed away, they’d get a dozen Christmas cards from people who still remembered my folks and the ranch.”
The Powder River Ranch is situated directly on the river and contains wetlands, irrigated hay fields, cottonwood-gallery forests and upland range. In addition to the domestic stock, it supports abundant wildlife including thriving herds of both whitetail and mule deer. Fourmile Creek Ranch lies several miles north and contains vast, rolling plains of mixed-grass prairie rangeland. Standing on the Fourmile Creek property, the view is broken only by the Bighorn Mountains to the west and Pumpkin Buttes to the east. “We are very pleased to accept the gift of these conservation easements, our first in Johnson County,” Stock Growers Ag Land Trust Southeast Field Representative Leah Burgess said. “Under the excellent stewardship of the Lund family, the properties have come to exemplify the very best of Wyoming; they are productive, diverse, scenic and historically unique places that provide both a window to the past, and now, a view to the future of protected ranch lands in Johnson County.” The Lunds’ generous contribution brings the Stock Growers Ag Land Trust’s protected working lands to 112,408 acres. Encana invests in ranching's future
CHEYENNE - For several years, members of the Wyoming Stock Growers Agricultural Land Trust Board of Directors have talked about the increasing challenges facing young families who want to get established in agriculture. Due to the generosity of Encana Oil and Gas, and matching gifts from private donors, a feasibility study has been launched to develop a program through which properties can be transferred to the next generation of farm and ranch families. A couple of recent events provide the basis from which this study is positioned. During phase I of the Encana funded “Community Dialogues for Rural Wyoming” the Wyoming Stock Growers Association (WSGA) documented issues that are currently facing our rural communities. “Like the Stock Growers Ag Land Trust, Encana is committed to conserving Wyoming’s working families, ranchlands, environment, and natural habitats,” said Randy Teeuwen, Encana community relations advisor. “We care for and want to protect our land and rural way of life for generations to come.” Additionally, the Stock Growers Land Ag Land Trust recently learned that brother and sister Fred and Catherine Kusel’s estate plans include a bequest of their ranch to the Land Trust with the directive that the ranch end up in the hands of young, beginning producers. “It is amazing to watch the ripple effect that this legacy gift has created,” Stock Growers Ag Land Trust Board President Randall Luthi said. “Corporate and philanthropic leaders are joining to establish a tool that could serve as a model for organizations across the West whose missions focus on preserving working agricultural properties for future family producers.” To learn more about the Ranchland Succession Program and opportunities to support this initiative, please contact Sarah Brown Mathews or Graham McGaffin at 307.772.8751.
CHEYENNE - Congressional members of the House Agriculture Committee flew into Cheyenne in early May to conduct a hearing on the Farm Bill prior to the next reauthorization in 2012. Rep. Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) played a key role in scheduling the Wyoming stop which featured two panels, one on forest health and the second on production agriculture. Wyoming Stock Growers Agricultural Land Trust Board Member and 6th generation rancher, Ogden Driskill joined wheat, dairy and sugarbeet producers to talk about what is working and what is not in Wyoming. Wyoming Livestock Roundup Publisher and cattle rancher Dennis Sun also testified. Click here for Driskill's full testimony. “As a rancher, and the first Wyoming Representative to serve on the House Agriculture Committee since 1941, I am pleased the committee chose Cheyenne for its hearing to address the devastation to our forests caused by the bark beetle, and help shape the upcoming farm bill,” Congresswoman Lummis said. “Input from Wyoming’s farmers, producers and forest managers has been absolutely essential. It’s necessary for these members of Congress to get a firsthand understanding of the challenges Wyoming faces. I’m grateful people in Wyoming shared their expertise on these complex issues.” Partnership protects sage grouse habitat, ag land Demonstrating a strong long-term commitment to protecting family-owned ranches, open space and wildlife habitat in Wyoming, The Conservation Fund and the Wyoming Stock Growers Agricultural Land Trust, with key support from the Jonah Interagency Office (JIO), announced in March the completion of a critical conservation project near Daniel, in the Upper Green River Valley. The Aspen Ridge Habitat Conservation Project protects 640 acres of prime sage grouse habitat through a conservation easement and improves habitat conditions on 10,400 acres of adjacent land owned by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The portion under the conservation easement will remain in private ownership for agricultural use.
The Aspen Ridge conservation easement in Sublette County conserves 640 acres of prime sage grouse habitat and working ranchlands. “This great partnership with Wyoming Stock Growers Agricultural Land Trust and the Jonah Interagency Office fosters a greater understanding and cooperation between agricultural and conservation communities,” said Luke Lynch, Wyoming state director for The Conservation Fund. “We’ve covered so much ground together in the past few years and have made a real difference in the habitat quality of the Upper Green River Valley, while at the same time preserving Wyoming’s strong legacy of family ranching.” The property contains two active breeding grounds for the sage grouse, as well as an established antelope migration corridor. It also provides crucial winter range for mule deer and important yearlong habitat for elk, moose and more than 60 of Wyoming’s Species of Greatest Conservation Need. Joining with surrounding BLM land and other private lands under conservation easements, this property forms a 35,000-acre block of protected land. “The Aspen Ridge project affects prime sagebrush steppe land on a large scale in an area of critical importance,” said Leah Burgess, field representative for Wyoming Stock Growers Agricultural Land Trust. “This project demonstrates the value of organizations working together to achieve substantial conservation outcomes. Through our partnership with The Conservation Fund and the Jonah Interagency Office, we have been able to serve the landowner’s conservation goals while forever protecting natural and agricultural resources with high public value.” The Conservation Fund negotiated the terms and the purchase of the easement with the family that owns and operates the ranch, Bob McNeel and Eva and Lee Kelly. The Stock Growers Ag Land Trust, with consultation from the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, will monitor the conditions of the property. The JIO provided a majority of the funding for the purchase of the easement. Additional funding came from the Tom Thorne Sage Grouse Conservation Fund and The Nature Conservancy, through a grant from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation. “This partnership with other agencies and the McNeel/Kelly family to protect open space, agriculture and wildlife is something we are extremely proud of,” said Jason Fearneyhough, Director of the Wyoming Department of Agriculture, which is one of the JIO agencies. “This easement will maintain the ranching operation while implementing a conservation plan that is sustainable for both agriculture and wildlife for years to come.” “It’s such a pleasure working with Wyoming’s ranching families along with our conservation partners, The Conservation Fund and the Stock Growers Ag Land Trust, to protect world-class wildlife species, including their critical migration routes and habitat,” said Jim Lucas, project coordinator for the Jonah Interagency Office. “The Jonah Interagency Office prizes its relationships with private landowners making a living in agriculture. This wonderful ‘synergy’ among landowners and partners has additionally provided important ‘habitat connectivity’ with adjacent areas of high conservation values, including the magnificent Cottonwood Ranches.” The Conservation Fund and the Stock Growers Ag Land Trust pioneered the use of oil and gas mitigation funds from the JIO in 2008 with the protection of the family-owned Cottonwood Ranches, located near the Aspen Ridge Habitat Conservation Project. Since then, the partners have completed four other projects with JIO funds, conserving nearly 8,000 acres in the Upper Green River Valley. Conservation easements in Wyoming: Not one size fits all By Leah Burgess, Southeast Field Representative
As I travel the state talking with landowners in my capacity as a Field Representative for the Wyoming Stock Growers Agricultural Land Trust, I am constantly reminded of the individualism and diversity of the people who make up this great place. For every land and resource issue Wyoming is currently facing, there are many strong and differing opinions about the ‘right’ way to approach each issue. The same diversity can be found in the motivations that lead landowners to consider a conservation easement. Whether to ensure the ranch passes down to the next generation with limited estate taxes, to adjust the value of the property to reflect agricultural values so a traditional operator can afford to buy it, to protect natural and cultural features or to offset financial gains through tax deductions; there are many reasons why people choose to place a conservation easement on their property. Here we will look at two actual conservation easements projects to illustrate ways in which a conservation easement can facilitate a family’s goals. Following the examples, we will include more information about the estate and income tax benefits of conservation easements, with details about how to get more information. Ranch A. The landowners’ original motivations to place the land under easement were many and included: to ensure the land remained open and available for production agriculture, to be able to sell the property at a reduced cost to a traditional operator, to reserve the ability for their offspring to have a residence at the ranch and to receive estate and income tax benefits for the donation of the easement value. We encourage folks to consider future possibilities for the landscape and landownership when constructing the details of an easement, so the document allows for flexibility as social, economic and agricultural factors change over time. Usually landowners choose to reserve rights under the easement for a wide range of management activities as well as future residential and/or agricultural building sites. This ensures the easement terms are flexible, manageable and not unnecessarily restrictive to future owners and are not difficult for Land Trust personnel to uphold. By donating a conservation easement with terms that were flexible and thoughtful, the landowners realized their goals for their land and family and they continue to be highly supportive and vocal advocates of agricultural conservation easements across the state. Ranch B: This ranch is owned by a family whose younger generation wishes to continue the agricultural operation on the land. The ranch is located in an area with extremely high development pressure and skyrocketing land values. This family was able to complete a ‘bargain sale’ of a conservation easement, which includes the Land Trust raising money to purchase the conservation easement at a price below the appraised value. This transaction facilitated many goals for the family. The next generation is now assured the land will be open and available for agriculture, their estate taxes are reduced and the input of capital through the bargain sale will allow them to make upgrades to the operation, retire debt or acquire more land. Financial Incentives for Donating a Conservation Easement The purchased easement program at the Wyoming Stock Growers Ag Land Trust includes a highly-competitive application process. Once a ranch is selected for the program, it could take years for the Land Trust to raise the funds necessary to purchase the easement, even at a bargain price. Due to the overwhelming demand for purchased easements versus the small number we are able to service with our limited funding, we encourage landowners to consider whether a donated easement may suit their needs and goals.. C. Timothy Lindstrom, an attorney who specializes in conservation easement federal tax law, gives a current synopsis of estate and income tax benefits for conservation easement transactions in the following section. His book, A Tax Guide to Conservation Easements, c. 2008 may be purchased through Amazon.com or IslandPress.org. Current Tax Incentives for the Donation of a Conservation Easement There are two federal tax incentives for the donation of a conservation easement: a federal income tax deduction and federal estate tax reductions. At the moment these two federal benefits are in limbo. The federal estate tax expired at the end of 2009 and has yet to be re-enacted in any form. In addition, an enhanced income tax benefit for easement contributions also expired at the end of 2009. Re-enactment of these provisions is likely, but uncertain. Income Tax The income tax deduction is also available for landowners who sell a conservation easement for less than its appraised value: the difference between the payment received and the appraised value is treated as a charitable contribution. Such sales are called “bargain sales.” Current law limits the amount the rancher can deduct for the contribution of a conservation easement to no more than 30% of his or her adjusted gross income. However, portions of the contribution in excess of this amount can be used against income earned in future years for up to a total of five years. Under tax rules that expired in 2009, the rancher could have used the easement deduction up to 50% of his or her income and apply any unused amount against as many as 15 years of future income. If more than 50% of the rancher’s income came from the ranching business, the expired law allowed the easement deduction against 100% of the rancher’s income. Estate Tax A conservation easement directly reduces the value of land that is subject to estate tax and it also allows the exclusion of 40% (up to a maximum exclusion of $500,000) of the remaining value of that land. For example, suppose an otherwise taxable estate includes $3 million in ranchland. A conservation easement on that land reducing its value to $1 million would save (assuming 2009 estate tax rates) $1,080,000 in estate taxes. This is because the value of the easement ($2 million) is removed from the taxable estate and an additional $400,000 (40% x $1 million) is excluded from taxation as well. This assumes an estate value of at least $6,500,000 (because the first $3.5 million is automatically exempt from tax under 2009 rules). Federal tax law also makes it possible for a deceased landowner’s family to direct the executor to contribute a conservation easement. Provided the tax rules are followed and no one claims an income tax deduction for such a contribution, this “post-mortem easement” will grant the same estate tax savings to the landowner’s estate as if the landowner had made the contribution while he or she was living. There are many factors that can affect the tax benefits from contributing a conservation easement, including whether land is owned by an individual, a corporation, a limited liability company, a partnership or a trust. It is important to consult with persons knowledgeable about conservation easements to determine exactly how a conservation easement may benefit you financially. Log on to at www.wsgalt.org or visit the Land Trust Alliance website www.lta.org to learn more about the nuts and bolts of easements and how landowners are conserving their properties. If you have questions, please contact the WSGALT office at 307-772-8751 or Leah Burgess at leah@wsgalt.org. Also, please plan on attending the Voices of the Valley speaker series on May 26, where we will explore private land conservation tools with conservation organizations, the Saratoga Encampment Rawlins Conservation District, and guest panelist and easement expert Bob Berger (Saratoga native). Special thanks to the George B. Storer Family Foundation for their support of our work in the Upper North Platte Valley.
Conservation easement funding signed by Governor On March 9, Governor Dave Freudenthal signed Senate File 69, “Natural Resource Large Project Funding,” into law. The bill, which sailed through both houses with unanimous approval, allocated funding toward the purchase of two conservation easements that the Wyoming Stock Growers Agricultural Land Trust and The Conservation Fund are working toward. Additionally, the bill authorized funds supporting two other conservation easements and nine habitat enhancement projects.
The Shepperson Ranch Conservation Easement will conserve 14,000 acres of the ranch that provides a living to the Shepperson family. Funding for the easement was passed through the 2010 legislature and signed by Gov. Freudenthal “The state legislature has been moving from grudging acceptance for the Trust to warm embrace over the past few years,” Select Committee on Natural Resources Senator Co-chairman Bruce Burns said. “You can see it in the ever increasing majority votes for the large projects. We have created a unique fund to preserve unique land.” Co-chairman Representative Pat Childers confirmed the increasing acceptance of the Trust since inception, “When the Wildlife and Natural Resource Trust Fund bill was considered in the House, it was very difficult to pass. Many thought it was simply a way to fund Game & Fish and private non-profit organizations – and with no accountability. After a few years of completing natural resource projects in partnership with many organizations, the WWNRT law has increasingly been accepted as a funding source to resolve many wildlife and natural resource problems in the state. Selling the large projects and adding to the trust fund is getting much easier.” The Shepperson Ranch Conservation Easement will conserve almost 14,000 acres of sagebrush steppe and almost a mile of the Greybull River corridor. Home to cutthroat trout and numerous sage grouse leks, the ranch also provides a living to a young family through a carefully tended cow-calf operation. When completed this easement will be the fifth project the Stock Growers Ag Land Trust and The Conservation Fund have partnered on in the Meeteetse area. Another focus area for the partnership has been Sublette County. SF 69 added funding to the third phase of conservation of the Cottonwood Ranch. The Conservation Fund has worked diligently to conserve this beautiful ranch which supports the family’s yearling operation, as well as vibrant wildlife habitat. Both projects are works in progress, and the support of our state is critical in raising funds from other sources. We are greatly appreciative.
Funding Up For Approval with State Legislature This month the 60th Wyoming State Legislature reconvenes to approve a budget for the next biennium. The Wyoming Stock Growers Ag Land Trust hopes the final budget will include funding for conservation projects through the Wyoming Wildlife and Natural Resource Trust (WWNRT).
Dollars up for approval by the Wyoming State Legislature would provide funding for conservation easements. These easement funds enable landowners to purchase additional acreage, livestock or equipment, adding revenue to the local economy. The Appropriations Committee has worked a budget that includes $6 million for projects over the next two years, with another $2.5 million for investment in the Trust’s corpus. This is a decrease in funding from prior budget years, but would go a long way to fund the many projects proposed by Conservation Districts, Game and Fish, sportsmen’s groups and other non-profits, and land trusts. The Legislature will also vote on grants approved last year by the WWNRT Board and recommended by the Select Committee on Natural Resources. WWNRT Funding is critical to providing matching funds that can bring dollars into Wyoming. Farm and Ranchland Protection Program (FRPP) dollars and smaller amounts from private foundations and donors are invested in Wyoming projects if we can provide a 25 percent cash match. The money spent on conservation easements provides ranchers with capital enabling the retirement of debt, improvements to the ranch or purchases of additional acreage, cattle or equipment. Dollars spent by the WWNRT brings revenue into the Cowboy State. These funds are ultimately an investment in the State of Wyoming.
Wyoming Land Trust Conserves 3,800 Acres of Ranchlands in 2009 CHEYENNE - As 2009 ended, so did the process for several Wyoming Stock Growers Agricultural Land Trust conservation easements across the state. The December easements protected more than 2,000 acres of working ranch lands in Wyoming.
Wyoming Wildlife and Natural Resources Trust representatives Bob Budd (left) and Hardy Tate (middle) lookout over a conservation easement in Sheridan County with Dave Clarendon (right). In December, the Wyoming Stock Growers Ag Land Trust and partners closed the Hovendick easement in Fremont County and the Clarendon, Scott, and Padlock III easements in Sheridan County. A partner project, the Focus Ranch easement, which straddles the Colorado-Wyoming border, also closed in December. Work continues on projects in Sublette and Park County with partners Wyoming Game and Fish Department and The Conservation Fund. A total of 3,884 acres entered into conservation easements with the Wyoming Stock Growers Ag Land Trust in 2009, bringing the land trust’s total Wyoming acres protected to 110,168. “Our efforts to conserve private ranchlands are possible only because of the support of landowners and our generous donors,” Wyoming Stock Growers Ag Land Trust Executive Director Pamela Dewell said. “Each easement we hold has a donated component and we greatly value the landowners who believe in our mission and support it with their hard-earned capital. Wyoming’s defining feature is our working landscape and we hope that continues in the future.” Hovendick “We are happy knowing that after Stan and I retire, our land will not be subdivided and our ranch will carry on for generations to come,” Lillian Hovendick said. “Because of the easement we were able to put a pivot over our hayfields which will save water, be more efficient and also reduce the work load.” This easement was purchased with dollars matched by the Wyoming Wildlife and Natural Resource Trust (WWNRT), the Farm and Rangeland Protection Program (FRPP) through the Natural Resources Conservation Service and the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation through The Nature Conservancy (TNC). The Hovendicks contributed more than 25 percent of the value of the conservation easement. Clarendon “I saw the open space disappearing,” owner Dave Clarendon said. “This easement will make it easier for the next generation to pick up the reins and carry on.” This easement was also purchased with dollars matched by WWNRT, FRPP and the Doris Duke Charitable Trust through TNC. The landowner contributed more than 25 percent of the value of the conservation easement. Scott and Padlock III The nationally known Padlock Ranch Company and Scott families operate large and productive cattle and hay operations. The donated easements provide a key open-space buffer and migration corridor for a variety of wildlife. “The easement will protect Mock Gulch, a species rich wildlife area and will protect one mile of Tongue River riparian corridor containing a Great Blue Heron rookery,” said Don Luse, Natural Resource Manager for Padlock Ranch. “The protection of ‘special’ places is the desire of the ranch ownership and our management philosophy.” Focus The Focus Ranch is located in the Upper Little Snake River Valley and is comprised primarily of riparian areas, irrigated meadows, cottonwood galleries and large areas of sagebrush dominated rangelands. The ranch provides habitat for black bear, elk, mule deer, bald eagles and greater sage grouse. “We live in a special place and we very much want to see it continue to look as it has for the past century,” landowners Terry and Maureen Reidy said. The Reidy family generously donated approximately 55 percent of the overall value of the conservation easements. The Wyoming Wildlife and Natural Resource Trust contributed to the remaining purchase of the easement along with many public and private Colorado-based funders. The Wyoming Stock Growers Agricultural Land Trust is dedicated to conserving Wyoming's working family farms and ranches and the wide-open spaces, natural habitats, and western lifestyle they support. Founded by a vote of the general membership of the Wyoming Stock Growers Association in December 2000, the Wyoming Stock Growers Ag Land Trust has conserved more than 110,000 acres of working ranchlands throughout Wyoming. For more information visit www.wsgalt.org or contact us at 307.772.8751 or info@wsgalt.org. Storer Foundation Renews Support NORTH PLATTE VALLEY - The Wyoming Stock Growers Agricultural Land Trust recently received a generous grant from the George B. Storer Foundation to fund work in the Upper North Platte Valley and surrounding communities. “We are excited about the developing projects and the potential to permanently protect key areas in the North Platte Valley in the coming years,” Southeast Field Representative Leah Burgess said. “Our increased outreach and presence in the community is made possible by the support of the Foundation.” Look for upcoming events, including a “Voices from the Valley” speaker series that will explore resource issues affecting the Valley. The series is scheduled to launch at 7 p.m., Feb. 10 in the Platte Valley Community Center. The series will continue through June 23 and is set for every second and fourth Wednesday of each month.
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Board member testifies for house ag committee
