The Nature Conservancy adds 138 acres to Nacatoch Ravines Conservation Area

HEMPSTEAD COUNTY, Ark. -- Jan. 11, 2008 -- The Nature Conservancy in Arkansas announced on Jan. 11 that it has purchased 138 acres to add to the Nacatoch Ravines Conservation Area in southwest Arkansas near Hope.

In the late 1980s the Conservancy and the Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission defined the boundaries of the 4,300-acre Nacatoch Ravines Conservation Area based on its ecological significance. Nacatoch Ravines Natural Area, which currently comprises 635 acres and is owned by the Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission and the Conservancy, became the first conservation tract added to the area when it was dedicated in 1989. Since then, more than 1,500 acres have come under conservation management in the Nacatoch Ravines Conservation Area, including a 1,018-acre tract known as Oak Ridge Ravines that the Conservancy purchased from International Paper in 2006.

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To date, The Nature Conservancy and its supporters have helped protect more than 250,000 acres of natural lands and waters in Arkansas. The Arkansas program currently owns or manages 36 nature preserves encompassing roughly 22,000 acres. These sanctuaries are found in every corner of the state. For more information about the Conservancy’s work in Arkansas, visit nature.org/arkansas.

The Conservancy has protected more than 15 million acres in the United States and has helped preserve more than 102 million acres in Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia, Africa and the Pacific. Learn more at nature.org.

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