Shasta Land Trust - Cow Creek Ranch

Wednesday 10th of March 2010

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Cow Creek Ranch

Conservation Easement Completed
on the 5,000 acre Cow Creek Ranch

Shasta Land Trust recently completed a conservation easement on the 5,000 acre Cow Creek Ranch in Shasta County. The completed conservation easement represents the conclusion of over two years of coordinated efforts by the owners of Cow Creek Ranch, Shasta Land Trust, and their partner organization, the Trust for Public Land. The conservation easement will prevent further development on the ranch, protecting the many natural resources on the property and ensuring that it remain open space available for ranching purposes.

Located along Whitmore Road just west of the community of Whitmore, Cow Creek Ranch is owned by the Cow Creek Ranch Limited Partnership. The 4,915 acre cattle ranch will remain in private ownership and may continue to be used for productive ranching uses under the terms of the conservation easement.

Shasta Land Trust is a local non-profit conservation organization, formed in Redding in 1998. Working only with willing landowners who are motivated to conserve their property, Shasta Land Trust has helped conserve over 16,000 acres of land in this region.

The Cow Creek Ranch will not be open to the public as a result of the conservation easement, but some limited visitation may be conducted by Shasta Land Trust in the future.

The conservation easement on Cow Creek Ranch joins similar easements for over 8,000 acres of ranches in the Cow Creek watershed, helping to support the local ranching economy and ensuring the diverse natural resources of the region continue to thrive for generations to come.

The vast acreage of Cow Creek Ranch features an impressive array of habitat types that support many species of wildlife. Blue oak and black oak woodlands, riparian corridors along several creeks, ponderosa pine stands, springs, and ponds all can be found on the property.

The conservation easement was purchased from the Cow Creek Limited Partnership with funds provided by the Wildlife Conservation Board of California, as well as the Preserving Wild California program of the Resources Legacy Fund Foundation.

The Redding Record Searchlight did a story on this exciting conservation success story, and you can read that story here .

An article also appeared on the local news website, Food for Thought, and you can read that article here.