800 acres of wildlife habitat, agricultural land gains protection in Franklin County
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POCATELLO — The Sagebrush Steppe Land Trust has announced that over 800 acres of wildlife habitat and agricultural land in Franklin County have gained protection through conservation easements.
According to a press release from the Sagebrush Steppe Land Trust, conservation easements are voluntary agreements that limit development in order to protect agricultural lands, wildlife habitat or other open space resources.
According to the National Conservation Easement Database, the agreements are between a landowner and a land trust or government agency, where the landowner retains many private property rights. Conservation easements do not automatically make properties open to the public.
The press release states that the lands now protected are two adjacent properties. Both properties have been owned and managed by the same family for several generations and will remain in active agricultural use.
“Our motivation for doing a conservation easement is simple,” one of the landowners, who asked to remain anonymous, said in the release. “We love the land and the wildlife that lives there and want to preserve its quality for the future.”
The release states that the conserved lands provide habitat for mule deer, elk, moose, sharp-tailed grouse, Bonneville cutthroat trout and several other conservation-priority species. The properties connect thousands of acres of public lands in the area, preserving wildlife migration corridors and the landscape connectivity that supports long-term ecosystem resilience.
The landscape also supports significant riparian corridors and a wide range of native plants, including big sagebrush, antelope bitterbrush, Rocky Mountain maple and native grasses.
With these lands now protected, the Sagebrush Steppe Land Trust has reportedly protected more than 11,300 acres across southeast Idaho.
“These are red-letter days for us,” Heath Mann, the trust’s executive director, said in the release. “I am humbled by the landowners’ desire to preserve their legacy. Together, we are protecting the Idaho we love today for the Idaho we hope to see tomorrow.”
Funding for these projects was provided through partnerships with the Natural Resources Conservation Service, PacifiCorp through the Bear River Hydroelectric Project Environmental Coordination Committee and support from private donors.
Sagebrush Steppe Land Trust is a nonprofit organization with a mission “to protect, connect, and enhance wildlife habitat, working lands, and community spaces in Southeast Idaho, now and for future generations,” according to its website.