The first census of land trusts in five years found 10 million new acres conserved nationwide since 2005, an increase of 27%!! The National Land Trust Census, released by the Land Trust Alliance, shows that during the same time period, the federal Land and Water Conservation Fund, a major federal conservation program, added just over 500,000 acres and saw a 38% funding cut. The census is available online at www.lta.org/census.

A total of 47 million acres—an area over twice the size of all the national parks in the contiguous United States—are now protected by land trusts. A greater percentage of the new acreage comes through local and state land trusts like Eastern Sierra Land Trust. In California, land trusts conserved over 700,000 acres between 2005 and 2010, a 34% increase in land protected.

Yednock Conservation Easement-Photo Courtesy of Rick Kattelmann

“Californians value their land, and we are conserving it at the community level,” said ESLT Executive Director Karen Ferrell-Ingram. “Here in the Eastern Sierra, we are investing in our future with land projects that ensure clean water, local food, and places to play for our children and for generations to come.”

Since 2005 Eastern Sierra Land Trust has preserved nine separate properties for a total of 6662 acres.

We’re grateful to our communities, partners, and supporters for caring so much about the future of this beautiful region. Thank you!