Spring Newsletter, MALT - 2023

The Legacy of Phyllis Faber

Forty three years ago, Phyllis and Ellen Straus — a botanist and dairy farmer — brought together local ranchers and conservationists to protect family farms from mounting development pressure. Their tenacity and foresight resulted in the birth of our organization — the first land trust in the nation focused specifically on protecting farm and ranchland.

Today, more than half of Marin County’s private agricultural lands has been protected through MALT agricultural conservation easements, voluntary agreements that permanently extinguish the threat of development and ensure the land remains in agricultural production. This growing network of protected land is a living testament honoring these visionary women.

On January 15, the local conservation community lost one of its most iconic members. Phyllis Faber, one of two visionary founders of the Marin Agricultural Land Trust (MALT), died at the age of 95. Our thoughts remain with her family, friends, and the entire community grieving from this tremendous loss.

“Phyllis was a force who fell deeply in love with California’s vibrant ecosystem and dedicated her career to protect it through her environmental advocacy,” shared Tamara Hicks, Continued on page 7...

A Letter from Lily

Dear friends,

Since starting my new role as MALT’s executive director in August of last year, I have committed myself to listening to as many members of our community as possible. I’m so grateful for the warm welcomes, long conversations around kitchen tables, and intimate tours of our working landscapes and family ranches. This is a community like no other.

As part of this listening tour, I was fortunate enough to sit and spend time with Phyllis Faber last fall. I will forever find inspiration in her energy, commitment and compassion for this community and place. I think we can all find inspiration in how two women of different backgrounds saw the value of protecting agricultural lands — to preserve a biodiverse landscape, a local economy, and way of life — and brought a community together to act. We will be forever grateful.

Building on the legacy of our founders, we are excited to embark on the next chapter of our work. We will be organizing our efforts around five key pillars, focusing on preserving agriculture, protecting biodiversity, building climate resilience, connecting our community, and strengthening the organization. While these pillars have been fundamental for much of our impact to date, there’s never been a more important time for our organization to thrive and now is the time to double down.

Phyllis and Ellen’s legacy will forever be memorialized in the working landscapes of Marin County. A legacy that was built on hard work, uncompromising values, and a commitment to our collective future. Of course, their vision would not be possible without your continued support.

Thank you for your steadfast belief in our shared vision and stay tuned for more good news from MALT.

Onwards,

Lily Verdone, Executive Director

From Water Scarcity, to Climate Resilience

As climate scientists have predicted, California is now experiencing new severities in its extreme weather events. From the fall of 2019 through 2022, the state experienced one of its driest periods in recorded history. This historic drought was punctuated by periods of unprecedented rain — including a 25-day straight barrage of atmospheric rivers this past December into March, that inundated our communities with flooding, persistent power outages, and even loss of life.

Our agricultural community is at the front lines of these extremes and is being forced to adapt to these new climate realities. To help meet this need, in April 2021, MALT launched the Drought Resilience and Water Security (DRAWS) initiative to help all Marin County ranchers and farmers with emergency drought relief.

“Through DRAWS, we were able to install rainwater harvesting off our barn, which helped fill the farm’s reservoir amid the unbelievable January storms. This is a huge improvement for our operation, not just for our business and livelihoods, but our family’s well-being.”

–Jessica McIssac, McIssac Ranch

With our DRAWS initiative, all Marin County agricultural producers are eligible for $15,000 grants for projects that develop water sources, add water storage, and increase water distribution. To date, we have committed more than $850,000 in 70 water infrastructure projects. These strategic investments are helping bolster our community’s resilience to this hydrologic whiplash.

IMPACT TO DATE

14 miles of piping

(the distance from Point Reyes Station to Bolinas)

69 watertanks

21 springs developed

246,250 gallons of additional tank capacity

25 water troughs

Now that we have helped address some of the most urgent water resource needs of our community, we are turning our attention towards how to adapt this emergency initiative into a more permanent program. Through this process, we’ve learned the importance of being able to quickly respond to the immediate needs of our entire agricultural community through a small grants program — something we plan to replicate in the future.

Drought resilience involves preparing for the worst in the best of times. We continue to work closely with landowners and ranch managers to determine operational water needs, ranch goals, and how to build more options into water management so they are prepared for a less predictable future.

Dive in and learn more about these efforts: malt.org/draws

Building a Future for Salmon

Once tremendously abundant, coho salmon in Marin County are now on the brink of extinction. Habitat loss, overfishing, water pollution, and climate change have pushed this species to its very edge. The fate of this iconic wildlife now rests in our hands.

revive these populations of endangered fish — a recovery effort that would not be possible in a landscape fragmented by suburban development.

Part of the complexity in conserving these fish are their dependence on the entire watershed’s health for their survival — from the highest reaches of the creek to the still waters of the Pacific-facing estuaries. Stewarding their spawning grounds, therefore, requires a multi-faceted approach across both public and private lands.

Our work protecting private farm and ranchland is a key piece in this collective recovery effort. Each acre of land conserved in MALT easements builds upon the region's growing network of protected land — a puzzle of private and public land that is greater than the sum of its parts.

As much as our work is about preserving the land as it is today, it is also about protecting the possibility of what it could be in the future. Through partnerships with local ranchers, the Marin Resource Conservation District, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and many other agencies and organizations, efforts are underway today to

Through more than four decades of conservation efforts, for example, MALT has helped conserve the majority of the Walker Creek watershed — from its mouth in Tomales Bay to its headwaters in Hicks and Chileno valleys. Home to an imperiled population of coho salmon, protecting much of this landscape through our conservation easements was the critical first step towards ensuring the future health of this watershed.

Not long ago, it is said that it was difficult to drive a horse and buggy across Walker Creek at the height of the winter salmon run because of the number of fish in the shallow water. Thanks to the foresight of yesterday’s conservation community and MALT’s generous supporters, the possibility of reviving this ancient migration still exists today.

Discover more and stay tuned: malt.org/salmon

WHAT'S A WATERSHED?

An area of land that catches rain and drains into a common outlet, like a creek, lake, or reservoir.

A Spotlight on Our Community

Larry and Madeline Petersen — A Lasting Legacy

When Larry and Madeline Petersen decided to leave a gift to MALT in their estate plans, it was driven by a desire to make a lasting legacy on the landscape. “It’s not so much about being remembered,” Larry shared, “but about helping protect something greater than ourselves.”

Having come of age in California in the 1960s, the couple was all too familiar with the realities of unchecked suburban sprawl. The Bay Area’s expansive open spaces and strong ethic of land conservation, as Larry further shared, “have always resonated with our souls.”

The couple met in the mid-1970s and together built their shared businesses from the ground, including LP Marketing,

Bayview Distributing, and Bayview Development. Of their distinguished career highlights, 32 years of working together is among the most notable — the majority of their 42 years of marriage.

During visits to Marin and Sonoma counties from their home in the East Bay hills, they began to learn the agricultural landscape of the North Bay. “This landscape just makes me feel good,” shared Larry. “And for all the hard work and success we’ve had — I don’t need a trophy or monument — we wanted our legacy to be the fact that we’re leaving all this beautiful land, as much as we can, for everyone that comes after us to enjoy.”

We are deeply grateful for the Petersens' tremendous generosity and the opportunity to perpetuate our shared vision for the future of Marin County. Their legacy will be preserved in the beauty and vitality of our agricultural lands, a gift not just for MALT but for all who call this landscape home.

PROTECT OUR FUTURE

The working landscapes of Marin County are precious, and together we are working toward a resilient future. With your continued support we can do even more for our local lands. There are many ways to help—here are just a few:

• Set up a monthly gift

• Check for corporate matching

• Direct a gift from your IRA

• Name MALT in your trust or 401(k)

• Follow us on social media

To learn more about making a gift in a way that works for you, visit malt.org/ways-to-give or call (415) 663-1158 ext 306

The Legacy of Phyllis Faber (Continued)

MALT board chair and owner of Toluma Farms, Tomales Farmstead Creamery, and Daily Driver. “Her legacy is the preservation of Marin’s natural beauty and will be appreciated in perpetuity.”

Born in New York City, Phyllis earned a B.S. in zoology from Mount Holyoke College and an M.S. in microbiology from Yale University, before eventually settling in California in the 1970s where she became active in conservation issues in the state.

Beyond her MALT legacy, Phyllis campaigned for the successful passage of the California Coastal Act and the establishment of the California Coastal Commission in 1972. She also chaired the board of the Buck Institute for Research on Aging and was a founding member of Marin Discoveries and the Environmental Forum of Marin and taught in the program for its 37-year-history. As a wetlands biologist, she monitored restoration projects in San Francisco Bay for more than 20 years. She also wrote articles and served as an editor for scientific journals including Fremontia, the journal of the California Native Plant Society.

To honor Phyllis, this spring we renamed our legacy giving circle in her honor: the Phyllis Faber Legacy Giving Circle. As one of the group's original co-chairs, Phyllis left a bequest to MALT, modeling the way for members of our community to make planned gifts via their wills, trusts, or other estate instruments — one of the most profound ways to help protect Marin County farm and ranchland forever.

Learn more by visiting: malt.org/legacy

Did You Know? Secrets of Marin’s Serpentine Soil

Outcroppings of serpentine rock are scattered across much of the Bay Area, a layer of applegreen to black earth that’s well-known for its incredible toxicity. With high concentrations of heavy metals, shallow depth, and often elevated summer temperatures, it’s difficult for even the most invasive of species to take root in the nearby soil.

With little competition for the ground’s meager resources, this soil type is home to a huge diversity of native plants well-adapted to the poor soils. Unadulterated by non-native grasses, serpentine soils are one of the best places to experience the spring wildflower bloom—showy displays of native flowers, some of which are found nowhere else on the planet.

Like small islands of native plant diversity, serpentine soils also offer critical habitat to a host of native and often endemic wildlife, including the endangered Bay checkerspot butterfly. It’s a bonanza of California native life and with spring underway, the show is just getting started.

Explore the serpentine soils of MALTprotected Leiss Ranch this spring. Find more information on the back cover.

Point Reyes Station California 94956

Out and About

We'd love to see you at one of our many events on MALT-protected farms and ranches. Bring your friends!

Learn more at: malt.org/events

Marin Agricultural Land Trust is a member-supported, nonprofit organization created in 1980 to protect Marin County farmland. Some of the Bay Area’s most highly acclaimed meats, dairy products and organic crops are produced on farmland protected by MALT's 92 agricultural conservation easements, totaling more than 55,000 acres.

To learn about Marin’s working farms and ranches and the food they produce, visit malt.org

MALT news is published quarterly by Marin Agricultural Land Trust, a nonprofit tax-exempt organization.

Editor: Matt Dolkas

Graphic Design: shirleycreative.com

Printer: ThirdBay Letterpress Inc.

Photos: Matt Dolkas, Autumn Fuentes, Paige Green, Jeff Lewis, and Art Rogers.

Printed on recycled paper using soy based inks.