Land Trust to use donated sites for Blackfoot River conservation

By David Ashby dashby@journalnet.com | Posted: Friday, January 2, 2015 1:00 pm

Aspens

A grove of aspen trees on Caribou County land donated by Ronn and Roberta Rich through a conservation easement.

The Sagebrush Steppe Land Trust received an early Christmas gift last month in the form of two parcels of land along the Blackfoot River watershed in Caribou County.

The properties were donated to the Southeastern Idaho land conservation group as a conservation easement from landowners Ronn and Roberta Rich.

The first parcel consists of 250 acres of riparian wetlands at the headwaters of the Little Blackfoot River. The second parcel, which is 400 acres in size, is located west of the Blackfoot Reservoir.

Jerry DeBacker, the executive director of SSLT, describes the properties as “a little piece of paradise.”

“They are both very distinct properties,” DeBacker said. “The Little Blackfoot property has a 60-acre pond, wetlands, and groves of aspen and conifer trees. The other property is great winter ground for deer and elk.”

The lands will be used for wildlife conservation, particularly in the restoration and protection of the rivershed’s Yellowstone and westslope cutthroat trout populations and breeding grounds.

“First and foremost, we want to protect the water quality of the Blackfoot Rivershed,” DeBacker said.

According to DeBacker, the Rich family first settled in the Caribou County region in the 1880s and started accumulating land for its sheep herding business.

The long history of sheep herding is clearly apparent at the Little Blackfoot River site, where decades-old carvings from Basque sheepherders employed by the family still remain on some of the aspen trees.

Ronn and Roberta Rich wanted to donate the 650 acres to ensure the land’s natural resources are protected for future generations.

“Conservation easements are just one tool in the large toolbox of land protection,” DeBacker said. “So if they sell the property in the future, the conservation easement stays in place and runs in perpetuity.”

With the Rich’s easement, SSLT now manages 19 parcels of land around Southeast Idaho, working to protect and restore natural habitat and agricultural ground.

Wood River Land Trust Job Posting

The Wood River Land Trust is seeking a fulltime Development Manager

  • Some responsibilities will include: Budgeting and budget management, Public relations, grant coordination, major gift coordination, foundation tracking, donor acquisition, prospect research, income giving reports. 

 

REQUIREMENTS

  1. Bachelor’s degree preferred.
  2. Strong interpersonal, verbal, and written communication skills.
  3. Organized, detail-oriented, able to set priorities, manage time as well as multiple projects and deadlines.
  4. Computer skills including Microsoft Excel, Word, PowerPoint, experience in utilizing the internet in a PC environment required. Experience with donor database software preferred.
  5. Nonprofit experience in the area of Development
  6. Commitment to conservation and the mission and work of the WRLT.

 

Please send cover letter and resume to Trey Spaulding at tspaulding@woodriverlandtrust.org or Wood River Land Trust, 119 E. Bullion St., Hailey, ID 83333

 

Salary DOE, Excellent benefits include medical, dental, 401K, flex scheduling, generous vacation/holiday/sick time

 

Deadline for Application is December 19, 2014  EOE