None The Nature Conservancy in Texas Press Releases Search All Press Releases Niki F. McDaniel (210) 224-8774, x 217, nmcdaniel@tnc.org, The Nature Conservancy of Texas

GM pledges $100,000 to Davis Mountains Preserve

Donation will support Nature Conservancy’s recent land acquisition and Madera Canyon interpretive nature trail project

San Antonio, Texas—November 10, 2004—GM has pledged $100,000 to support The Nature Conservancy’s recent acquisition of 10,000 acres to be added to the Davis Mountains Preserve as well as a planned interpretive nature trail that will be open to the public.

Terry Pritchett, director of Environment & Energy Policy at General Motors Corporation’s Public Policy Center in Detroit, Michigan, announced the donation Saturday during the dedication of the McIvor Conservation Center, a recently completed structure intended to serve as a hub for outreach to landowners at the Davis Mountains Preserve. GM has previously supported the Conservancy’s work in the Davis Mountains with donations of a Suburban as well as cash.

"Our donation will help pay for The Nature Conservancy’s acquisition of 10,000 acres of the Eppenauer-Fisher Ranch and help build an interpretive hiking trail so that visitors can enjoy and learn about the natural treasures of the Davis Mountains," Pritchett said.

Carter Smith, state director for the Conservancy’s Texas Program, called the donation pledge "a tremendous boost" to fundraising efforts to pay for the land acquisition and nature trail. "The Nature Conservancy has had a terrific partnership with GM that began nearly 11 years ago," Smith said. "GM has donated more than $19 million in cash and 173 vehicles, for a total amounting to more than $23 million. While that financial support is crucial to our work, certainly GM’s rugged vehicles are an essential tool for conservation."

Pritchett noted that Texas is "special to GM," having donated six trucks to Conservancy projects in the Davis Mountains, at Dolan Falls Preserve on the Devils River and in North Texas on the Blackland Prairie, among others. He added that GM is now donating two more trucks to the Texas Program, to be used by the Conservancy’s statewide staff botanist and on conservation projects in South Texas. Additional initiatives with the Conservancy throughout Texas are in the planning stages.

Pritchett said this was his first visit to the Davis Mountains. "I wanted to come out to see what kind of conservation work is being done here in these wild mountains," he said. "While I was here I learned what a really special place this is – not just because of the mountains but because of the people. Now, I’ve not only had the chance to see this beautiful area but to meet local ranchers, members of the community and the Conservancy staff working together to preserve this special place."

The Conservancy’s recent 10,000-acre purchase connects the Conservancy’s 18,000-acre Davis Mountains Preserve and 4,000-acre Madera Canyon Preserve, bringing the total of Conservancy-owned preserve land in the Davis Mountains to 32,000 contiguous acres.

The 2.5-mile nature trail, planned by Conservancy staff with assistance from local volunteers, will be built with hand tools to ensure minimal impact on the habitat and aesthetics of the area, and pedestrian gates will be placed at both trailheads to prevent motorized vehicle access. A trailhead sign will be located at each end of the trail, along with interpretive signage describing the local ecology, including the plants and animals that may be viewed along the trial. The trail is being developed in partnership with Texas Department of Transportation, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, the National Park Service and the Chihuahuan Desert Research Institute in addition to volunteers.

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The Nature Conservancy is an international, nonprofit organization that preserves plants, animals and natural communities representing the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive. To date, the Conservancy and its more than one million members have been responsible for the protection of more than 14 million acres in the United States and have helped preserve more than 102 million acres in Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific. In the Lone Star State, with more than 70 nature preserves and conservation projects on private lands, The Nature Conservancy of Texas protects 250,000 acres of wild lands and, with partners, has conserved more than 920,000 acres for wildlife habitat across the state. Visit The Nature Conservancy of Texas on the Web at nature.org/texas.

About GM: General Motors Corp. (NYSE: GM), the world’s largest vehicle manufacturer, employs approximately 325,000 people globally in its core automotive business and subsidiaries. Founded in 1908, GM has been the global automotive sales leader since 1931. GM today has manufacturing operations in 32 countries and its vehicles are sold in more than 190 countries. To learn more about GM's commitment to the environment, go to www.gmability.com.