Field Notes Header February 2013 [Photo: Leine Stikkel]
February 2013
WY Conservation Bills
Red Rock Ranch
Stewardship Manager
Summit Circle

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Our 2012 Annual Report is now available online! Contact us if you would like to be added to our publications mailing list.

JHLT 2012 Annual Report
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Photos (from top to bottom) courtesy of:

Leine Stikkel 

Steffan Freeman

Leine Stikkel 

Leslie Steen  

 

   

EGVB

Conservation Bills Before the Wyoming Legislature  
This January, the 62nd Wyoming Legislature convened with over 400 bills up for review. Of these, several bills were proposed in the Wyoming House of Representatives and Senate that we were keeping a close eye on: HB 0081, HB 0106, and SB 0060. HB 0081, Large Project Funding, contains state funding approval for Wyoming Wildlife and Natural Resource Trust Fund (WWNRT) projects - projects that seek to protect our Wyoming's wildlife habitat and natural resource values, in keeping with the WWNRT's mission. Out of the 19 proposed Large Projects, 16 are conservation easements. The projects, sponsored by established land conservation organizations as well as the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission, seek to permanently protect over 30,000 acres in 8 Wyoming counties, including 3 projects in Teton County of which 2 are sponsored by the Jackson Hole Land Trust.

In Teton County, the Land Trust is represented by Wyoming Senator Leland Christensen and Representatives Ruth Ann Petroff and Keith Gingery, who recognize the value of open space and wildlife habitat protection to our County and communities. Senator Christensen, who was involved with the Snake Headwaters Wild and Scenic River Designation, says that "as budgets allow, I strongly support funding the Wildlife Trust Fund and Game and Fish funding. I have long supported land trusts." We are grateful to have advocates for open space protection alert us as bills affecting our work are brought before the Wyoming Legislature - bills like HB 0106, which would have barred the state from funding conservation easement projects across the board (including those in the Large Project bill), but thankfully died early in the legislative session.

 



Red Rock Ranch [Photo: Leine Stikkel]

Red Rock Ranch: A Family Legacy 

In late December, the Land Trust worked with the MacKenzie family to add a new, 153-acre easement to the Red Rock Ranch up the Gros Ventre. Rich in colorful history, the Red Rock Ranch is a picturesque guest ranch of red rock cliffs and wide open spaces, and has been owned and managed by generations of the MacKenzie family since 1974. Nearly three quarters of the 640-acre ranch, which is surrounded by the Bridger-Teton National Forest and adjacent to the Gros Ventre Wilderness - and a major pronghorn migration route - is now permanently protected by easements. "We are grateful to the MacKenzie family's strong commitment to land conservation and stewardship on their ranch, truly a gem of the valley," says Land Trust executive director Laurie Andrews of this remarkable protection success.  



Land Trust Welcomes New Stewardship Manager    
Sean O'Donnell This January, the Land Trust welcomed our new Stewardship Manager, Sean O'Donnell, who will be working with landowners and land managers to ensure the long-term stewardship of JHLT easement-protected properties. Sean was born and raised in northern Illinois and moved to Alaska in the fall of 1997 to study Wildlife Biology at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. Though he eventually transferred to the University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point, where he received a B.S in English, he continued to return to Alaska in the summer and began living in Denali, Alaska year-round in 2003. Sean has previously worked for Denali National Park as a General Ranger, where he filled the role of EMT, search and rescue tech, wildlife tech, firefighter and land manager. He also acted as the park liaison to land owners in the Kantishna area, on the west end of Denali. In 2009, Sean relocated to Colorado to be reunited with his wife, Melissa, and his dog, Bowie. He has spent the last 2 years working as a Park Manager/Ranger for Colorado Parks and Wildlife. "When the opportunity arose to move to the Jackson Hole area and join the Land Trust in their efforts to protect some of the most pristine habitat in the continental U.S, I leapt at the chance," says Sean.


Summit Circle See You at the Summit!    

Our newly established Summit Circle recognizes committed donors who have given consistently to the Land Trust's Annual Fund, for over 20 years. Gifts of any amount count toward participation and are greatly appreciated. Participation in the Summit Circle means being part of a special community of donors dedicated to shaping the future of Jackson Hole's open spaces. We thank our Summit Circle donors for their steadfast commitment to keeping Jackson's scenic beauty, wildlife habitat, and agricultural values intact, year after year.  
The Jackson Hole Land Trust is a private nonprofit that was established in 1980. We work to preserve open space and the scenic, ranching and wildlife values of Jackson Hole and Western Wyoming landscapes by assisting landowners who wish to protect their land in perpetuity.