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TNC Acquires 17 Acres Adjacent to River Fork Ranch

 

With a big financial lift from an anonymous $200,000 donation, TNC was able to purchase the 17-acre Crawford parcel, which is surrounded on three sides by the 788-acre River Fork Ranch, TNC's flagship preserve in the Carson River project area. At 805 acres, the working ranch and nature preserve is now large enough to support breeding populations of Sandhill cranes, white-faced ibis, and other migratory shorebirds.  The newly acquired land also includes a pond providing habitat for leopard frogs and western pond turtles, as well as enhanced opportunities for wetland restoration and public access.

Instead of listing their land on the open market, local landowners Craig and Miya Crawford agreed to sell to The Nature Conservancy for approximately $200,000 below  the property’s appraised value.

 

According to the Crawfords, who are building a new home elsewhere in the Carson Valley, “Our goal was not to ‘cash out’ but to protect this property’s spectacular view shed, open space, and wildlife habitat. We have watched with great interest and growing admiration how The Nature Conservancy is managing its preserve next to us, so when it came time for us to sell, the first call we made was to them.”

 

The acquisition of the Crawford parcel is the culmination of a vision that The Nature Conservancy and the local community have shared for River Fork Ranch since 2000, when TNC and the Timken-Sturgis Foundation co-purchased the property.

 

As Kathryn Landreth, The Nature Conservancy’s Nevada State Director, explains, “Our goals have always been to protect River Fork Ranch for conservation and biodiversity, to demonstrate compatible ranching practices, and to open a portion of the property for public access and conservation education.”

 

Over the last six years, The Nature Conservancy has worked with local partners including Bently Agrowdynamics to demonstrate that a profitable ranching operation can co-exist with the restoration of pond, wetland and riparian habitat. With the acquisition of the Crawford property, TNC is now in a position to move forward with implementing public access and conservation education.

 

Conceptual plans are already being developed to convert the Crawford residence into a public visitors center, as well as for a 2-mile network of trails that will link up with the Carson Valley Trails Association’s broader network