Remembering 20 years of Conservation
During NM Governor Bill Richardson’s first term in office, I was director of policy and issues, and I dealt with matters concerning water. During that time, Cecilia Rosacker and several colleagues approached the Governor’s office about the possibility of obtaining...
Conservation Easements & Restoration Help Protect Landowners from Wildfire
From her Socorro County farm, RGALT’s director, Cecilia Rosacker, saw the black cloud billowing in the distance. The culprit was a fire in the Escondida area of the Rio Grande Bosque—a place near 4 of RGALT’s conservation easements. The following morning, with smoke...
Creating a String of Pearls
Conservation easements, land trusts, restoration projects—these tools of land and natural resource protection can seem a bit abstract and complex. However, once you meet the people behind them, the value of these tools paired with the passion and amazing synergy among...
Saving the Farm for the Next Generation
When the Jones sisters inherited their family farm, they knew one thing for certain: they wanted it to remain farmland. Their parents raised the sisters on their small three acre farm, irrigated off the historic Cristo Rey acequia in Albuquerque’s South Valley....
Accreditation!
RGALT today announced it has achieved accreditation – a mark of honor in land conservation. The Land Trust Accreditation Commission awarded accreditation, signifying its confidence that RGALT lands will be protected forever. Accredited land trusts across the country...
Early success in 2016
The first two months of 2016 were productive ones for your Rio Grande Agricultural Land Trust (RGALT). Not only did RGALT wrap up the accreditation with the Land Trust Accreditation Commission, but the organization also finalized five new conservation easements with a sixth expected to close soon. Not a bad start to this new year.
Conservation Easements 101
A conservation easement (CE) is a voluntary and legally binding land protection agreement between a landowner (grantor) and a qualified conservation organization (grantee). Grantor and grantee work together to customize a CE appropriate to the land, as well as in...