Burnt Fork area gets another conservation easement
By Michael Howell
Last Thursday the Ravalli County Commissioners gave preliminary approval to spending $295,000 out of the county’s Open Lands Bond Program for the purchase of a conservation easement on the 61 Bar Ranch, located east of Stevensville. It is the latest addition to a string of conservation easements located in the Burnt Fork area that promises not only to preserve open space and agriculture in the drainage in perpetuity, but will also provide a wildlife-friendly corridor stretching from the Sapphire Mountains all the way to the Bitterroot River where the Lee Metcalf National Wildlife Refuge is located.
The 61 Bar Ranch has been owned and operated for over 30 years by Dick and Karen Smith. Although the application for the use of Open Lands Bond funding in the purchase of the conservation easement was only officially submitted on July 29, 2016, according to Bitter Root Land Trust Executive Director Gavin Ricklefs, work on the easement really began back in 2013. Unfortunately, Dick did not live to see the county’s commitment to the project last Thursday. He passed away just last month. Dan Severson, Burnt Fork resident and friend of the Smiths, remarked at the meeting that the last time he talked to Dick about the project, Dick said, “Dan, why does it have to take so long?”
Ricklefs said that Karen Smith was as passionate about placing the land in a conservation easement as her husband and remains in total support of the project. The ranch is located adjacent to the Town of Stevensville’s east boundary and off of North Burnt Fork Road. It is comprised of six parcels totaling approximately 519 acres. Of this acreage, the conservation easement is proposed to conserve approximately 507 acres. The majority of the property consists of irrigated hay and pasture land, and is bisected by several creeks. The property contains two single-family residences and several outbuildings within a proposed 15-acre building envelope in the north-central portion of the property, the envelope of which does not allow for any additional residences. A future proposed boundary line relocation will exclude two areas of approximately 5 acres each from the property, which will also be excluded from the conservation easement.
According to Ricklefs, the property’s primary values proposed for conservation are agricultural lands, wildlife habitat, scenic open space, and proximity to other conservation easements and state and federal lands.
Ninety-eight percent of the lands in the conservation easement are either prime agricultural soils or soils of statewide importance. Ricklefs said the ground produces up to three tons of hay per acre. Having that much acreage under production in perpetuity is a big plus for the local economy where agriculture remains a strong component. It provides very scenic views from the Eastside Highway which it borders, and it supports a large number of deer and elk, raptors, and other wildlife with several creeks traversing the property.
This latest easement adds a giant piece to the growing puzzle picture of conservation easements, and state and federal lands that protect the entire Burnt Fork drainage from the negative impacts of development.
The appraised value of the conservation easement is $1,025,000. Add to this the cost of the transaction itself, estimated at $39,805, and the total value of the conservation easement comes to $1,064,805. The landowners are donating $219,805 of that value and a grant has been obtained through the NRCS Agricultural Land Easement Program for $550,000, which leaves a remainder of $295,000. That is the amount being requested of the Open Land Bond Program.
Open Lands Board member Bob Crone told the county commissioners that this was the highest scoring project in the history of the Ravalli County Open Lands Bond program.
“We have a large board and sometimes have a dissenter or two,” said Crone. “I’ll tell you in this case it was completely unanimous.”
The Planning Board staff also made a recommendation for approval at the funding level requested.
Dan Severson, Burnt Fork resident and conservation easement holder, said, “One hundred years from now people are going to look back and say these people did the right thing. We’ve changed the course of the valley all for the better.” He said the Smiths had taken on one of the best pieces of ranch land in the Burnt Fork and made it even better with the investment they put into improvements and the management practices they put in place.
“They took it to a whole other level,” he said.
Several other people spoke in favor of the project. One young man, Dan Kerslake, who now owns land up the Burnt Fork which was placed in a conservation easement by the previous owner, Hattie Farrell, said that the addition of this easement in the Burnt Fork was immense, not just due to its size but also its crucial location and the good soils and irrigation rights from 1860.
“To a young guy like me it means promise that the land will be there someday for someone like me, another young farmer to continue the cycle,” he said.
The commissioners approved the preliminary commitment of Open Lands Bond funds on a vote of 4 to 1 without much discussion. Commission Chair Ray Hawk cast the dissenting vote. He votes against every proposed use of the Open Lands Bond funds and has said previously it’s because he is against conservation easements in principle.