Business as (Un) Usual

Row crop easement is a first for the Nebraska chapter

Sandhill cranes searching for food in a cornfield along the Central Platte River. © Chris Helzer/TNC

To some, it might seem like a contradictory proposition:putting a conservation easement, a tool most often used for grassland conservation, on cropland with the intention of keeping it…cropland.

Indeed, this project represents the first of its kind in the Platte River Valley: a conservation easement that protects wildlife habitats while maintaining row-crop agriculture.

A conservation easement is a voluntary, legally binding agreement that limits certain types of uses or prevents development from taking place on a piece of property now and in the future, while protecting the property’s ecological or open-space values..

Location, location, location

Platte River © Chris Helzer/TNC

The Nature Conservancy did not intend to keep the 153-acre Leaman tract in Hall County, Nebraska. It was purchased in June of 2005 with the intention of selling or trading the land with retained conservation easement rights.

“We wanted to sell the land to a conservation-minded local landowner or partner who shared our commitment to protecting the biological integrity of both the tract and the surrounding lands,” said John Heaston, Platte River program director.

The surrounding lands are owned by the Platte River Whooping Crane Trust and the Conservancy. The Leaman property was purchased because it provides critical buffer protection for existing wetland and prairie habitats on these conservation sites, while also being part of a major sandhill crane roost site along the Platte River.

If this land was developed—either with sand and gravel mining or with housing—one of the most important roosting sites for sandhill cranes on the Platte River would be disturbed.

Excessive noise and visual disturbances, especially at dawn, dusk and at night, could severely disrupt the cranes’ use of this vital roost.

Housing development on the tract could introduce invasive plant species to the surrounding prairies and stop the use of common and necessary prairie management practices like prescribed fire. Housing also brings predators (like free-running dogs and cats) to native wildlife, including threatened and endangered birds nesting on Platte River sandbars..

Good for people and good for birds

Sandhill crane © Chris Helzer/TNC

The staging of half a million sandhill cranes during spring migration on the Platte River is a phenomenon. It is a critical element in the life cycle of the mid-continental population of sandhill cranes. Roosts numbering in the tens of thousands are scattered throughout the Platte River.

Cranes roost on the river but forage in adjacent fields and grasslands. Each sandhill crane spends between one and four weeks foraging and accumulating energy reserves in the form of fat. This accumulated energy is critical as it provides the necessary fuel for the continued migration to nesting areas and the reserves required for successful breeding.

Cranes and other migratory birds like to roost in flat cropland and eat waste grain left in the field. The birds don’t interfere with farming because they migrate through the area before spring planting and after fall harvest. 

An important piece of the puzzle

Chris Rundstrom uses a seed spreader. The Conservancy is seeding 100 acres on land owned by the Whooping Crane Trust, which is directly east of the Leaman Tract easement © Chris Helzer/TNC

This project is part of a larger effort by the Conservancy and its partners to sustain the biological diversity of the Big Bend region. To do this, it is critical to build larger habitat complexes and employ large landscape-scale management tools such as prescribed fire and restoration of cropland to grassland in locations where crop production capability is low. The Leaman easement provides a valuable complement to the application of these tools.

One barrier to conservation work on the Platte River has been a concern over competition between agriculture and wildlife conservation.

“We wanted to address this concern by demonstrating the mutual benefits that a conservation easement can provide. Here we are allowing traditional agriculture on productive soils while restricting future development that threatens the long-term interests of both farmers and conservation groups,” explained Heaston.

Troy Rainforth. Photo reprinted with permission from the Omaha World-Herald

To maximize these benefits, the Conservancy is working with a local producer. “We felt we could forge a strong partnership with Troy Rainforth and he was willing to help us work with other producers in the region,” said Heaston.

In April, Rainforth, who had previously rented the property, purchased the tract with a conservation easement. The legal agreement allows him to use the land for a wide array of habitat-compatible  purposes, including irrigated row-crop agriculture, hunting and grazing.

The easement prevents subdividing, housing development and sand or gravel mining. It also prevents the placement of a cell phone tower on the land or sale of topsoil.

“We are looking forward to working with Troy and we hope to do similar easements in the future,” said Heaston. “This easement provides a way to restore habitat that is compatible with both economic and ecological needs.”