Trust Our Land: The what and why of land trusts
Trust Our Land
Todd Winslow Pierce/Eaglevalleywild.org
Picture this: it’s 1981 in the Eagle Valley. The ski industry is booming, so much so that Beaver Creek ski resort is about to start spinning its lifts for the first time. People from around the world are flocking to this little slice of heaven to experience it for themselves. Elk, deer, and other wildlife are starting to feel pressure from our community’s growing footprint.
Folks living throughout the area, from multi-generational ranch families in Gypsum and Sweetwater to ski industry pioneers nestled in Vail, were feeling the growth. While a booming ski industry was far from guaranteed, things were heading in that direction.
Visionaries Roger Tilkemeier and Forest Ranger Don Price saw the economic potential of their beloved valley and community. They also recognized that the foundation that brought it success in the first place — the wide open spaces, ranching heritage, scenic vistas, and rich ecology — was in jeopardy without a concerted effort to protect it.
They brought together a diverse coalition of advocates, families, ranchers, nature buffs, and businesspeople to help shape the future of our community. It just so happened that the land trust movement was heating up across the United States at the same time. The local group banded together to create their own: the Eagle Valley Conservancy, now known as the Eagle Valley Land Trust, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting land, wildlife habitat, and open spaces in and around the Eagle and Upper Colorado River valleys.
Land trusts: what and why
There are a lot of different ways to protect land and all the attributes that go with it, including wildlife habitats, scenic value, and recreation access. Some are very effective and some are more durable than others. But no method is more effective or long-lasting than a conservation easement.
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Conservation easements are Eagle Valley Land Trust’s primary conservation tool. They’re voluntary legal agreements that permanently retain the character of a piece of property, and they’re tailored to the needs and wishes of the landowner. Eagle Valley Land Trust doesn’t acquire the property outright, as the landowner retains full ownership.
We often use a simple analogy to explain the process. Land is like a box of crayons. Each crayon in the box represents a different right. The yellow crayon might be the right to subdivide the property for housing. The red crayon might be the right to clear-cut the forest on the property. Let’s say the blue crayon is a water right.
Landowners can donate some of these crayons to an accredited land trust in exchange for generous tax benefits at the state and federal levels. But they’ll retain the box and the remaining crayons. That landowner is also free to pass their box and remaining crayons to the next generation or sell them to someone else. The crayons they donated? Land trusts like Eagle Valley Land Trust will hold and protect them forever.
Eagle Valley Land Trust: Then and now
The Eagle Valley and its local land trust have grown a lot in 44 years. Eagle County’s population is now about 54,381. Eagle Valley Land Trust protects over 14,000 acres across 41 different properties and has a dozen more projects underway.
You’d recognize many of the properties protected by Eagle Valley Land Trust, especially the two-thirds of them that are open to the public. You may have even visited one of the public conserved properties in the last week without realizing it. Some of them have shaped entire neighborhoods. Take Homestead “L” Open Space, for example. It not only protects a critical winter habitat for wildlife but also connects the neighborhood with a pleasant and safe walking path.
Some, like Miller Ranch Open Space and the Eagle River Preserve, act as community focal points and an easy escape to nature for residents of Edwards and Avon while giving elk a place to hunker down for the winter. Others, like the West Avon Preserve and Abrams Creek Open Space in Eagle, permanently protect specific recreation opportunities for mountain bikers, trail runners, and hikers.
Most protected properties play a variety of roles for our community. The Brush Creek Valley Ranch & Open Space is a great example. It protects critical winter elk habitat and ranching heritage, and it also hosts a variety of trails for walking, biking, and fishing access. The landscape also happens to be incredibly scenic.
Conservation for and with community
The Eagle Valley Land Trust can’t do conservation alone. It takes a community and a wide variety of partners to move projects over the finish line. Eagle County Open Space, for example, plays a critical role in acquiring properties and managing them for the community long term. Many of those aforementioned open spaces, like the Brush Creek Valley Ranch & Open Space and Eagle River Preserve Open Space, are owned and managed by Eagle County Open Space.
Community partners, including nonprofits like Walking Mountains Science Center and Betty Ford Alpine Gardens, governmental entities like Eagle County Conservation District and CSU Extension, and private landowners and donors all have a role in this important conservation work, too. It takes a big team to make this work happen for our community
Are you interested in learning more about the benefits of conserving land? Email us at info@evlt.org or join us for a free community program or workshop this spring.
