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Hall Mountain area lands are high national
priority for conservation program |
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June 21, 2014 |
A two thousand acre group of six privately-owned
parcels of forest land in the Hall Mountain area
of Boundary County, valued at $3.6 million
dollars, is ranked second in the nation as a
national priority to protect its timber
resources and wildlife habitat under the Forest
Legacy program.
The same program is currently in the process of
securing conservation easements on 15,000 acres,
worth more than $9.32 million, in the McArthur
Lake area. The McArthur Lake area easements will
be finalized through 2014 and 2015.
These conservation easements, secured through
the Forest Legacy program, maintain the land
parcels as working forests, and also preserve
recreational opportunities in the areas for
hiking, biking, hunting, and other activities on
nearly all of the lands, according to the Idaho
Department of Lands.
Under the Forest Legacy program, privately held
lands for which conservation easements have been
provided, will be maintained as working forests
in perpetuity, continuing to grow trees, provide
forest products, homes for wildlife, and
recreation.
The Forest Legacy Program was created in 1990 as
part of the Farm Bill for that year. This
program provides funding to states to protect
privately-owned forests that might be converted
to non-forest use, by securing conservation
easements for those lands. Most of the funding
for this program comes from the U.S. Department
of Agriculture Forest Service. Organizations
such as The Nature Conservancy, Trust for Public
Land, Idaho Fish and Game, and others work with
landowners, the Idaho Department of Lands, and
other agencies to put together projects such as
these throughout the state. These organizations
identify areas that would benefit from
conservation, conduct scientific and economic
analysis, coordinate partnerships, work with
potential landowners, and secure additional
project funding.
The Hall Mountain Forest Legacy project was
facilitated and submitted by The Nature
Conservancy.
Currently, around 63,000 acres of forest land in
Idaho are being maintained as working forests
unde the Forest Legacy Program.
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