Hall Mountain area lands are high national priority for conservation program

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.