wood river land trust Spring 2013
Protecting the heart of the valley...now and for the future.
Letter from the President, Trent Jones
Trent Jones, President.
s some of you may know, the state of Idaho released its draft of the greater sage grouse management plan last summer with the stated purpose of conserving sage grouse and its habitat, heading off the need to list them under the federal Endangered Species Act. Given the current status of this iconic native bird and the extent of its historic range, the state’s plan has broad reaching implications for public and private lands management across southern Idaho. I took a few minutes to browse through the report recently, and it got me thinking about the Wood River Land Trust (WRLT ) and our planning efforts, the partnerships we have developed, and some of the conservation transactions we have completed over the past several years. WRLT projects such as Square Lake Preserve south of Timmerman Hill, Sheep Bridge Preserve along the Big Wood River near Magic Reservoir, the Kelly Reservoir conservation easement on the eastern Camas Prairie, and the Antelope Valley conservation easement near the old ranching settlement of Grouse, Idaho are all located in core grouse areas and provide vital contributions to the sustainability of sage grouse and other sage dependent species across our region. In this issue of the Land Trust’s newsletter, you will read about another such project at the base of Timbered Dome Mountain at the edge of Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve between the communities of Carey and Arco. Working with a local rancher and the Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Land Trust spearheaded a highly creative transaction involving conservation easements and a land exchange that resulted in the permanent protection of nearly 4,000 acres of native sagebrush steppe habitat and working ranchlands. This month’s issue also includes a contest to “Name This Publication” (more information found on the back cover). I hope you take part by contributing unique and interesting names which capture our mission and subject of this publication. You will see additional changes to the design and content of the newsletter in the coming issues, including articles by guest writers who offer outside perspectives about different elements of our work. We trust you will find this supplementary information both informative and thought provoking. We look forward to announcing the winner of the contest in the summer edition. The Wood River Land Trust is dedicated to protecting the places that matter in south central Idaho. We hope you enjoy this issue and are inspired by the work that your gifts and support enable us to accomplish. Sincerely,
cover: Greater sage grouse © Larry Barnes; back cover: Previous Heart of the Valley submission.
Conservation in Action
Wood River Land Trust (WRLT) is known for using a wide range of land conservation tools to carry out its mission. We’re excited to let you know about two protection projects that came to fruition during the past few months. It’s important for the Land Trust to leverage your contributions with public funding and other private funding. Equally important are opportunities to leverage protected land and to work with conservation buyers who willingly purchase a property with a conservation easement and work to further our conservation goals on the property. On the next few pages, you will read about two creative protection projects—Timbered Dome, a property protected in 2011—was leveraged to protect an additional 1,900 acres and the Ketchum Land Exchange in which 626 acres of land was conveyed to a public lands agency. Both of these creative techniques to protect land required perseverance, patience and partnership. Land conservation and restoration often takes years to complete for many reasons. Maybe the landowners are not ready to engage in conservation, or a family is working out its legacy planning, or a landowner does not need
the tax break that comes with a donation of an easement or bargain sale just yet. When the landowners are ready, though, WRLT will be there because of the annual support from you and our donors. Timbered Dome and the Ketchum Land Exchange met a variety of WRLT’s conservation goals. • We were able to transfer WRLT lands to public partners for long-term stewardship, freeing up resources for future land protection projects. • In working with the appropriate public partner, the Land Trust ensured that the future of these properties remain in the public trust. In the case of the Ketchum Land Exchange, both lands protected through the deal were inholdings within Bureau of Land Management (BLM) lands and contain natural resources important to the public, therefore BLM ownership and management is ideal. • The funds received from the Ketchum Land Exchange will be “recycled,” protecting additional conservation lands, places of natural beauty that make our region such a wonderful place to live, work and play.
View from Timbered Dome, of nearby volcanic butte.
Conservation in Action
Timbered Dome Wood River Land Trust recently completed a conservation project that resulted in 3,580 acres of land protected in the Pioneer Mountains. The project protects core sage grouse habitat, winter range for mule deer and elk, productive agricultural lands, and open space along a major pronghorn migration corridor. Working with a conservation landowner, the Land Trust leveraged one of its preserves to result in greater land conservation. Two years ago, WRLT made its largest fee-title acquisition to date, purchasing 1,610 acres of important sagebrush-steppe habitat within the Pioneer MountainsCraters of the Moon landscape. The Timbered Dome Preserve is named for its proximity to a visible “timbered” summit and protects critical wildlife habitat for sagebrush obligate species, such as greater sage grouse and pygmy rabbit. The Land Trust’s acquisition of Timbered Dome protected important habitat within the 2.5 million-acre Pioneer Mountains Craters of the Moon area, an intact landscape where greater sage grouse and other wildlife are not hindered by development. Immediately after acquiring Timbered Dome, WRLT began a working relationship with a neighboring landowner who already leased the property for limited cattle grazing. The relationship led to discussions about improving riparian and creek habitat on the Land Trust property and enhancing upland habitat for greater sage grouse. Recognizing that the neighboring landowner was interested in protecting wildlife habitat while continuing a ranching operation, we discussed options for permanent protection of his own property and the Timbered Dome Preserve. WRLT and the neighboring landowner submitted joint applications to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Grassland Reserve Program (GRP) for protection of Timbered Dome and the neigh
boring ranch. The GRP is a voluntary conservation easement program that emphasizes support for working grazing operations, enhancement of plant and animal biodiversity, and protection of grassland under threat of conversion to other uses. Landowners chosen for the program are financially compensated for eliminating development and crop cultivation, and for following a grazing management plan. In 2011 and 2012, the USDA prioritized greater sage grouse habitat and the Pioneer Mountains-Craters of the Moon landscape for the GRP, making it possible to accept our GRP application. Using this federal protection program, WRLT leveraged its Timbered Dome Preserve to safeguard an additional 1,780 acres of the neighboring landowner’s property. A total of 3,390 acres of rangeland is now protected with GRP conservation easements held by the USDA, and an additional 191 acres of cultivated cropland are now under conservation easement held by WRLT. The neighboring landowner now owns Timbered Dome Preserve and will continue to manage the property under a GRP grazing management plan. The Land Trust will be able to use its GRP financial compensation for further land protection efforts. This accomplishment achieves multiple conservation goals of the Land Trust; the Timbered Dome Preserve is permanently protected by a GRP conservation easement and will remain protected and managed by a conservation-minded landowner, additional acres of important sagebrush-steppe and prime farmland are saved, and the Land Trust can continue to further its mission. This project also adds to the continued work of the Pioneers Alliance, a partnership in which the Land Trust is highly involved. The Pioneers Alliance has worked to protect 35,000 acres of private land in the Pioneer Mountains-Craters of the Moon landscape, with additional conservation easements in progress.
Conservation in Action
Land Exchange In a lengthy transaction that originated in 2004, WRLT, the BLM and a private landowner recently completed a land transfer. Land exchanges can often accomplish multiple conservation and land management goals, and take great effort from all parties involved. This project accomplishes BLM’s land tenure adjustment objectives, consolidates land ownership, and enables the Land Trust to continue to further its mission and land protection efforts. In this transaction, 20 acres of BLM land was conveyed to a north valley landowner; Square Lake and Sheep Bridge Canyon Preserves, totaling 627 acres, were conveyed to the BLM; and the Land Trust’s financial compensation will further its mission by using the funds to protect and restore other important landscapes. The exchange was necessitated because a north valley landowner purchased property that was previously developed in a way that accessed adjacent BLM lands via a right-of-way. In an effort to resolve these issues, the landowner and the BLM approached WRLT, suggesting a land exchange. The Land Trust has been involved in land transfers and exchanges in the past when the project fulfills the Land Trust’s mission and offers conservation benefits. WRLT and the BLM identified Square Lake and Sheep Bridge properties as potential exchange lands because they both contain significant biological resources and were in-holdings within land owned by the BLM. Furthermore, these are properties that the BLM would not purchase on its own even though the agency deemed them important for conservation purposes. To accomplish the land exchange, the BLM required an environmental analysis that reviewed impacts of the potential exchange to natural and cultural resources under the national Environmental Policy Act. After the environmental analysis was completed and public comments were submitted, the BLM issued a
decision to approve the land exchange in October 2012. Over the last several months, WRLT and BLM staff has been working to finish due diligence and final exchange documents. The prospect of a land exchange made it financially possible for the Land Trust to purchase and hold Square Lake and Sheep Bridge properties for future transfer to the BLM. The 320-acre Square Lake Preserve was protected because of its historic sage grouse lek, ephemeral water resources, and pygmy rabbit habitat. The 307-acre Sheep Bridge Canyon Preserve was protected because of its sage grouse habitat, mule deer and pronghorn migration corridor, and Big Wood River riparian area. The migration corridor is a vital link for wildlife between the foothills of the Smoky Mountains and the vast sagebrush steppe landscape surrounding Magic Reservoir. Development on either of these properties could have affected significant wildlife habitat and open space. This land exchange accomplishes several of WRLT’s goals and finalizes eight years of cooperative work with the BLM and the private landowner. Square Lake and Sheep Bridge Canyon Preserves will continue to be managed for critical wildlife habitat and important recreational access. Creative conservation work, such as this, will allow WRLT to continue protecting land beyond traditional conservation easements and preserve management.
top from left: Timbered Dome; Greater sage grouse, photo by Larry Barnes; Sheep Bridge Canyon; Goose eggs found at Square Lake, photo by Laura Speck.
Conservation in Action
Reasons to Save Species The preamble of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 recognized that endangered and threatened species of wildlife and plants “are of esthetic, ecological, educational, historical, recreational, and scientific value to the Nation and its people.” Some of the many specific reasons to invest money and effort into actions to conserve species threatened by extinction include: • • • • •
Benefits of natural diversity Contributions to medicine Biodiversity and agriculture Environmental monitors Benefits to mankind yet to be discovered
How Many? …how many were first to be on the U.S. Threatened and Endangered Species List? 78 …how many U.S. species are currently on the list? 618* …how many U.S. and foreign species on the list today? 1,233* …how many species from Idaho are on the list? 16* …how many U.S. species have recovered and are off the list? 28* …how many U.S. species have gone extinct? 10* …how many plant species are on the U.S. list? 817 *does not include plants Greater sage grouse © Robert Griffith.
Threatened and Endangered Species
Federal protection of endangered species dates back to the Lacey Act of 1900, when Congress passed the first wildlife law in response to growing public concern over the decline of the passenger pigeon (Ectopistes migratorius). As public awareness of environmental problems grew, the Department of Interior formed a Committee on Rare and Endangered Wildlife Species to identify species in immediate danger of extinction. The Redbook— Rare and Endangered Fish and Wildlife of the United States, published in 1964, served as the first official document listing species the federal government considered to be in danger of extinction. Two years after the Redbook list was published, Congress passed the Endangered Species Protection Act of 1966—the first piece of comprehensive endangered species legislation. The goal, as stated in the 1966 Act, was to “conserve, protect, restore, and propagate certain species of native fish and wildlife.” It was under the 1966 Endangered Species Preservation Act that the very first list of threatened and endangered species was created.
Special Projects
Gloria Moore Osberg Trail Reconstruction Complete Wood River Land Trust donors, Idaho Conservation League, U.S. Forest Service, and Ketchum Rangers honored Gloria Osberg in July 2011 by renaming the popular Ridgeline Trail—Forest Service Trail #142 between Fox Peak and Baker Lake trailhead—and raising funds for its reconstruction in her honor. We’re pleased to announce that the Gloria Moore Osberg Trail is successfully rebuilt, and opened in late fall of 2012. After joint fundraising by all groups to raise more than $125,000, Ketchum Rangers oversaw the summer work by volunteers, and by September 2012, hikers and bikers were able to access the new portions of this magnificent trail. Parts of the trail were re-done because of steep grades, erosion issues and sensitive habitat concerns. Gloria’s contributions to conservation and a shared appreciation of our surrounding landscapes have been a lifelong commitment. She and her husband are longtime WRLT supporters, and many of our donors are familiar with her hiking guide, Day Hiking in Sun Valley, a staple for hikers in the Wood River Valley. To visit Gloria’s trail, see Blaine County Recreation District trail links at bcrd.org—look for trails north of Ketchum and you’ll find it listed as Osberg Ridgeline Trail, #142.
from top: View from Gloria Moore Osberg Ridgeline Trail; Gloria and John Osberg at dedication event.
Special Projects
Is Your Lawn Trout Friendly? Becoming aware of the effects of our actions on nature, and changing our routine is the basis for the Trout Friendly Lawn program. Over-used chemicals wash into streams and rivers, depleting oxygen in the water and stressing trout. Pesticides work in water just as they do on land—killing aquatic vegetation and the insects that trout eat. Over-exposure to chemicals can also be harmful to family pets. The Land Trust gives small yard signs to residents that have made an effort to use some of the following “trout-friendly” lawn care techniques: Water-Wise Landscaping Over-watering lawns on a daily basis not only robs streams and rivers of needed water, it encourages shallow root growth of grass, making it susceptible to disease and drought. Many landowners are converting parts of their lawn to native or drought tolerant grasses which require less water and work to maintain. Tips on watering: • Water every two days to encourage deep root-growth, and • Water between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m.
Organic Fertilizers Try using organic fertilizers, like compost and lawn clippings, to promote plant growth and encourage soil organisms that help avoid thatch buildup. Organics are also less soluble and less likely to leach nutrients into nearby streams. Talk with our local landscapers for recommendations. Tips on keeping your lawn healthy: • Aerate the lawn 2-3 times per season to reduce soil compaction, • Apply a ¼ − ¾ inch layer of compost over the lawn, and • Apply fertilizers in the spring when soil temperatures are greater than 45 degrees. Limit Herbicides and Pesticides Maintaining a weed-free lawn is often not practical, or even necessary. Most homeowners tolerate 5 - 10% weed growth without even noticing them. If you have a weed problem, try pulling and digging weeds instead of using chemicals. Pesticides and herbicides should be a last resort, since they can be toxic to fish, wildlife, and pets. Help your lawn outcompete weeds by maintaining good soil drainage and watering properly.
Special Projects
Gurgle, Gurgle, Gurgle How many gallons per day does an American household average for outdoor uses? 120 How much of the average outdoor use is for watering lawns and gardens? 50% or more Nationwide, how many gallons of water per day are used for landscape irrigation? 7,000,000,000 Of the water you use to irrigate your lawn and garden, how much is actually effective? 50% If you use soil moisture sensors with your lawn and garden sprinklers, how many gallons of water can you save annually? 11,000 gallons or more
Trout Friendly Lawn Partners
4302 Glenbrook Drive, Hailey, ID 83333
ART, ECOLOGY & LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE
Special Projects
Have you tasted your dirt recently?
Many landscape companies and homeowners are evaluating the level of salt when looking at one aspect of soil. You could taste your dirt for salt, or perhaps using a SCT meter to measure soil salinity would be better. Here, in the Wood River Valley, many homeowners inherit a compacted soil from the building process which is poorly aerated, has little water absorption and minimal nutrient value. This is an ideal habitat for weeds. Add in a history of synthetic fertilizers and chemicals use, and the addition of these salts creates a wonderful environment for weeds—as well as salty tasting soil. Weeds, which literally means “little herbs,” are meant to take over and build the soil in a disturbed environment (i.e. construction projects, road barrows). They are actually healing the soil in their evolutionary process! When a proliferation of a particular weed shows up, it is an indication of a mineral or microorganism imbalance, possibly both. All synthetic fertilizers are in the form of a salt which dissolves easily in water, making them highly available to the plant in large quantities. This produces the quick “green up.” After the synthetic fertilizer passes by the plant leaf and root, the plant is soon left hungry again. Imagine pouring salt on anything: It dehydrates. In addition, microorganisms can become imbalanced when they live on a nutritionally poor diet and in biologically dead soil. Ideally, soil and its “soil food web” of organisms have evolved with plants over the millennia to live symbiotically. The plant roots excrete sugars and proteins into the soil to attract and feed microorganisms, such as bacteria, fungi, protozoa, and nematodes. In return, the organisms act as the “gut” for the plant, breaking down and pre-digesting complex nutrients and making them table ready for 10
the plant to take up. When the plant needs different foods, it sends a chemical signal to the soil organisms to “fetch” whatever it may need. These necessary creatures are, like humans, mostly water and are quickly pickled when salts are regularly poured on them. If having a green lawn and minimal weeds are important, plan on working with your landscaper or joining WRLT’s Trout Friendly Lawns program to develop your soil over time. Assuming the soil is dead due to the use of “synthetic drugs,” there may be a transition period using both synthetic and organic products to repopulate all the beneficial microorganisms. In an organic landscape, the goal is to feed the soil, and let the soil take care of feeding the plant. In this process, the plant gets what it needs, when it needs it. Initially, this could mean frequent applications of organic fertilizer in a season to start providing the soil with microorganisms (nematodes, fungi, bacteria), nutrients and minerals. Bringing your soil into balance requires: • Time! Be in there for the long haul. • Spring, summer and fall aeration including amending your soil with compost and sand. • A transitional period of changing from synthetic to organic fertilizer. With the soil brought back to a state of health and balance, the weeds no longer have a job to do. As in all things, understanding the parts means understanding the whole. Just like food, having too much salt in soil just isn’t appetizing nor healthy. With thanks and a link to Sustainable Growth Boise: www.sgidaho.com. For help on Trout Friendly Lawns contact Patti Lousen at WRLT or our Trout Friendly Lawns partners.
Special Projects
Explore the Great Outdoors
Wood River Land Trust hosts a series of outings for our donors and community. Reserve your place for one or more of the adventures, meet new like-minded people and perhaps get a different perspective on your surroundings. Because these events are weather dependent, check our website for the most current information at www.woodriverlandtrust. org/events.php or contact Keri York at 208-788-3947. • • •
Birding Walk – May 4 from 7 a.m. to noon, meet at WRLT office. Hailey Greenway Clean Sweep – May 11 in partnership with ERC, more info tba. Boxcar Bend Workday – May 18 from 10 a.m. to noon, meet at Boxcar Bend Preserve, in partnership with Trout Unlimited.
Weeds, Weeds, Weeds Have any of the following weeds? Maybe your soil is missing these nutrients or maybe you should get rid of the weeds quickly. See below the list of weeds and the issues that may be prompting them to grow. Dandelion: Calcium & iron deficiency, high potassium, and low organic matter. Mullein: Calcium & vitamin C deficiency, high salt content and magnesium.
Tips on dealing with weeds: Increase grass density by raising your mower blade to 3” to outcompete weeds. Spot treat with white vinegar or another organically certified material, to discourage lawn weeds. Spot spray the weeds only if you must use a chemical pesticide. Do not treat the entire lawn.
Nightshade: Calcium, phosphorus & copper deficiency, high potassium. Lambsquarter: Calcium & phosphorus deficiency, high potassium & magnesium. Knapweed: Invasive noxious exotic, pull it before it seeds.
from left: Healthy soils promote better growth and fewer weeds; Knapweed, a highly invasive plant. 11
COMMUNITY AND EVENTS
WOW! Teaching Students About Generosity WRLT partnered with area schools and a local non-profit to teach Wood River Valley students about generosity. Twenty-five not-for-profit organizations submitted projects to Wow-Students.org for consideration. Each student in the Blaine County school system, approximately 4,000 kids, will receive $25 from WowStudents.org and classrooms are charged with selecting one of the non-profit projects. We’re pleased to announce that all three of our projects were selected for funding. Below are WRLT’s three conservation-oriented projects and the classes that selected them. The Lorax Project: Our natural environment is a place of wonder, a place to explore and enjoy. Unfortunately the land cannot speak for its own protection, neither can wildlife nor trees. WRLT wants students to speak for the trees,
Community School kindergarten class learning about trees in the Hailey Greenway.
Heart rock tree at Draper Preserve.
Wood River High School students in Larry Barnes’ biology class presenting initial results from water quality tests. 12
just like the Lorax did in the Dr. Seuss book of the same name. The Community School’s kindergarten class chose to help WRLT and the trees, by making a video about why land protection is important for our health and the health of our natural resources. The students have asked an older grade class to help them make the video, in which they will speak for the trees. We will use this video in our marketing materials, our website and social media pages. Look for it this June. Plant a Tree and Watch it Grow: WRLT’s ten-year restoration project of the Hailey Greenway, including Draper Wood River Preserve (Draper Preserve) and Lions Park, has made it more popular than ever. The next piece of this project is to re-forest the area near the Bow Bridge of the Big Wood River and the Croy Creek Wetlands Boardwalk. Helping us do this is the Pioneer Montessori’s 3rd grade class—a total of 69 students. These adventurous students will each purchase a native tree or shrub with their WowStudent.org money and plant it in Spring 2013. If they choose, the students may honor someone by their generous act. WRLT will send a note to the students’ honorees, along with a photo of the student with their tree or shrub. It will be a great place for both the student and honoree to visit and watch their plants grow. Water Quality Monitoring: Wood River High School’s biology class, taught by Larry Barnes, is monitoring water quality at the Hailey Greenway where the Croy Creek wetlands and Big Wood River intersect. This is also the current site of the City of Hailey’s snow storage. WRLT is working with the city, encouraging them to move the snow due to possible contaminated run-off from melting street snow leaching into the wetlands and river. Funds from the high school biology class will purchase monitoring equipment, allowing the students to upload their data to a national water quality site. By participating in these projects, we hope students forge a connection with the land, and understand the important role that clean water, healthy forests and community action plays in the safe-keeping of our ecosystem. We want this student-nature bond to carry into the future, growing the next champions of land conservation.
Volunteers Help with Croy Creek Restoration Efforts This past fall, Sage School high school students and “Friends of the Hailey Greenway” helped WRLT and the Idaho Deptartment of Fish and Game (IDFG) plant wetland sod at Croy Creek Wetlands near the Draper Preserve. To help prevent invasive reed-canary grass from spreading, wetland sod was harvested from another Land Trust preserve and transported to the newly restored wetlands. The hope is that the wetland sod, comprised of native rushes, will help diversify the native vegetation in the wetland. Students and volunteers planted sod along the edge of a reed-canary grass monoculture, and both WRLT and IDFG will monitor the progress of the restoration efforts.
COMMUNITY AND EVENTS
Sage School students spreading wetland sod in the Hailey Greenway.
Calling All Friends of the Hailey Greenway
Students Help Collect Sagebrush Seed
Are you interested in volunteer opportunities in the Hailey area? We are looking for stewards who want to get their hands in the dirt, plant native species, help the habitat and be advocates for natural open spaces. We will be planning two events per year, working hands-on in the Draper Preserve area. Sign up to be a Friend of the Hailey Greenway! If you would like to hear more about becoming a volunteer steward, join us for one or both of the events below or contact Patti Lousen at plousen@woodriverlandtrust.org or 208-788-3947.
In mid-November 2012, twenty-five Community School high school students helped Wood River Land Trust and the Idaho Department of Fish and Game (IDFG) collect sagebrush seed on the Sheep Bridge Canyon preserve. IDFG collects sagebrush seed to aid in local restoration efforts where fires have burned important wildlife habitat. Some of the seed is germinated and grown into seedlings that will be planted by hand. Other sagebrush habitat is restored through seeding by aircraft or tractor. Sagebrush communities provide cover and food for sage grouse and other native species, so protecting this plant is key to the health of the sage grouse. In Idaho there are more than ten different sagebrush species. The students collected Wyoming big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata ssp. wyomingensis) seed, which is a mediumsized shrub that grows up to three feet tall. Sage grouse use it for nesting, wintering and brood-rearing.
Friends of the Hailey Greenway Planning Meeting Date: April 11, 5:15–6:15 p.m. Location: Wood River Land Trust 119 East Bullion Street Hailey Friends of the Hailey Greenway Work Day Date: June 8, 10:00 a.m. to noon Location: Meet at the pavilion in the Hailey Greenway near Lions Park
Wyoming big sagebrush seeds collected for transplant.
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COMMUNITY AND EVENTS
Pioneer Montessori students learning about Adopt-A-Trout program.
WRLT Helps with Adopt-A-Trout This past fall, Pioneer Montessori elementary students joined Trout Unlimited (TU) and WRLT staff, along with Idaho Department of Fish and Game (IDFG) and Department of Environmental Quality biologists to collect adult trout via electro-fishing. The fish were surgically implanted with radio-telemetry tags and then released back into the Big Wood River. Tracking fish helps the IDFG and TU discover if fish are getting stuck in canals or other areas, and what areas may not be ideal trout habitat. Before setting the tagged fish free, each student named their fish; names like “Frankenfish”, “Trey the Trout” (inspired by Trey Spaulding, WRLT’s Director of Operations), “Tootsie” and “Spot”. The Adopt-A-Trout program was started by TU in Wyoming and recently brought here by local TU staff. It includes monthly classroom visits by staff so students can learn more about trout habitat and lifestyles. Over the course of the school year, each student will help track and record their fish’s movements. In fact, we heard in the beginning of February 2013 that “Trey the Trout” is in Magic Reservoir.
Brown trout being caught and tagged.
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Employer Matching Gifts Your company may be one of thousands that match employee contributions to Wood River Land Trust (WRLT). If you or your spouse is employed by a matching gift company, the impact of your contribution to protecting our natural resources could be significantly increased by their match. You can double or even triple the impact of your gift to land conservation. Here’s how to take part: SEARCH: Contact your employer’s human resources office and ask whether your company matches employee donations. FILL IN: Complete the donor/ employee part of the form provided by your company and send it with your contribution to WRLT. SEND: Mail your completed form to WRLT with your contribution. We’ll handle the rest and return it to your company to initiate their fulfillment of the match.
Please send your completed corporate matching gift forms to: Wood River Land Trust 119 East Bullion Street Hailey, Idaho 83333
Development / Organization
This newsletter is published by Wood River Land Trust 119 E. Bullion Street Hailey, ID 83333 Telephone:
208-788-3947
Fax:
208-788-5991
Website: www.woodriverlandtrust.org WRLT is a public benefit Idaho company and is tax exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Contributions to WRLT are tax-deduct-
If you have any questions about corporate matches, please contact Daphne Muehle, Director of Development, at 208-788-3947 or dmuehle@woodriverlandtrust.org.
ible as allowed by law. Editors: Deb Gelet, Daphne Muehle Writers: WRLT staff Designed by Penfield Stroh Printed by Express Printing Cover photo © Larry Barnes BOARD OF DIRECTORS Trent Jones, President David Anderson, Vice-President John French, Treasurer Robin Garwood, Secretary Richard Carr Ed Cutter
Heart of the Valley
Pay Tribute to the Places You Love
Rick Davis John Flattery Jack Kueneman
Heart of the Valley 2012 photo winner by Beverley Robertson.
WRLT’s 9th annual Heart of the Valley contest is coming. What special place in our Valley pulls at your heart? We hope this year’s contest continues to inspire people to rediscover the unique wonders we see around us every day, from the iconic places that define Sun Valley to the special places in the Wood River Valley. Take a photo of it, make a video about why it’s important to you, pour your heart out in poetry or prose, and enter. This year’s entries are due Monday, May 6. Winners will be announced at a reception on Saturday, May 25. More than one entry per person is encouraged. Look for our upcoming ads in the Idaho Mountain Express. Visit our website at www.heartofthevalley.net for more information and to download an entry form. In the meantime, get out in nature and be inspired! Contact Jill Brown at jbrown@woodriverlandtrust.org with questions.
Jane Mason Rebecca Patton Wolf Riehle Megan Stevenson Steve Strandberg Barbara Thrasher STAFF Scott Boettger, Executive Director Jill Brown, Development Assistant Patti Lousen, Project Coordinator Daphne Muehle, Director of
Development
Trey Spaulding, Director of Operations Keri York, Senior Conservation
Coordinator
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Wood River Land Trust protects and restores land, water, and wildlife habitat in the Wood River Valley and its surrounding areas. We work cooperatively with private landowners and local communities to ensure these areas are protected now and for future generations.
NON-PROFIT STANDARD U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT NO. 679 Boise, ID
119 East Bullion Street Hailey, Idaho 83333 ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED
Name This Publication
You may have noticed some slight design changes happening in our newsletter. We are in the process of creating what we hope is a more inspirational publication for you to read. Our intent is for our newsletter to: • Inform you about our creative and strategic approach for using your contributions effectively to protect and restore important landscapes; • Bring you outside information about conservation which impacts us here at home; • Relate the behind-the-scenes stories of the people and history of the land we save through words and photos; and • Inspire others to join in our mission. Help us name our publication. The deadline for submission is June 15, 2013. The grand prize winner will see his/her submission appear on the covers of our newsletters and will receive a WRLT hat and a commemorative Bow Bridge of the Big Wood River SIGG bottle. The top ten finalists will be featured in our next edition and on our website. To enter, send an email to Daphne Muehle at dmuehle@woodriverlandtrust.org. We look forward to hearing from you.
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