Saving farmland, saving nature

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This article first appeared in INHF's Fall 2007 magazine.

Joe McGovern/INHF

INHF recently helped five Iowa families establish conservation easements through the Farm and Ranchland Protection Program. The Bronner family property, pictured here, exemplifies how these easements can protect the best of Iowa’s natural and agricultural heritage.

For the cattle in the pasture, wildlife in the woodlands, drivers on the Scenic Byway and paddlers on the river, not much changed on Sept. 26—and that was the point. Five Iowa families finalized conservation easements that day, permanently protecting their lands’ natural and agricultural heritage.The Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation worked with these families—three in the Loess Hills and two along the Upper Iowa River—to establish conservation easements through the Farm and Ranchland Protection Program (FRPP). Like other easement donors, these families maintain private ownership while protecting public values, such as wildlife habitat, scenic views, water quality and an agricultural tradition.

“Over the years, INHF has helped protect dozens of public and private sites in these important regions,” says Joe McGovern, INHF’s Land Stewardship Director. “For these particular properties and families, FRPP happened to be the best way to meet our mutual goals.”

While each family donated a significant part of the easement’s value, they received financial compensation from the Natural Resources Conservation Service, a division of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Other funding came from the Loess Hills Alliance, Young Family Foundation of Waterloo and INHF’s Loess Hills and Upper Iowa River endowments. The Iowa Department of Transportation contributed transportation enhancement dollars for protecting sites visible from the Loess Hills Scenic Byway.

Upper Iowa River easements

Two of the easements protect segments of the Upper Iowa River, along with oak-hickory timber, limestone bluffs, oxbow wetlands, pasture, cropland and additional features noted below. These easements will be held and monitored by INHF.

• Kenneth and Reta Bronner and their son and daughter-in-law, Kenneth and Teresa Bronner, protected 308 acres in Winneshiek County. Their property also has CRP, pasture, hay fields and more than 3/4 of a mile of Upper Iowa River frontage. It borders several public areas and previous INHF easements.
• Jim Wolfe and Janis Rockabrand protected 117 acres in Howard County. Their property also features native white pines, a natural spring and nearly one-half mile of Upper Iowa River frontage.

Loess Hills easements

Three easements are located in the Luton Special Landscape Area, one of 12 Loess Hills regions identified by the National Park Service as particularly worthy of protection. Each site contains prairie remnants, pastures and abundant grassland habitat. These easements will be held and monitored by the Woodbury County Conservation Board.

• Leo Lidgett protected 230 acres, which also contain woodlands.
• Gary and Susan Chapman protected 160 acres, which also hold woodlands and small crop fields.
• Gene and Linda Kollbaum protected 67 acres, which also include CRP.

 by Cathy Engstrom, INHF’s Communications Director.

For more information, e-mail Cathy Engstrom, Director of Communications, or call (515) 288-1846.