Couple protects land along Wapsipinicon River

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This article first appeared in INHF's Winter 2008 magazine.

Brian Fankhauser/INHF

Guy and Shirley Grover protected nearly a mile of shoreline along the Wapsipincon River.

by Andrea L. Zimmerman

Guy Grover recalls listening to the howling of coyotes from his tree stand, searching for bobcat tracks by an old sand quarry and catching largemouth bass. Even though Guy no longer does these things himself, he’s helped ensure that future generations can “appreciate the land just the way it is.”

Guy and Shirley Grover recently donated a voluntary permanent protection agreement, also known as a conservation easement, to the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation. The couple has been living, hunting, planting and working on this Buchanan County property for more than 20 years. So it just felt right to preserve their beloved landscape for today and forever.

The protected 190 acres is located about two miles west of Quasqueton. It contains natural woodlands and native tree plantings, a remnant sand prairie, oxbow wetlands and a small, inactive sand quarry. Its rolling topography also supports diverse woodlands, including native bur oak and shagbark hickory. With such diversity, the property harbors a rich variety of native plant and animal life.

But the site’s natural values don’t end at the property line. The Grovers’ land borders the Wapsipincon River for nearly one mile, and this stretch is one of five sites listed by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) as a Protected Water Area. Though still in their private ownership, the Grover property is near public natural areas, expanding the conservation value of each.

INHF staff and the Grovers developed conservation easement language to preserve the wildlife habitat, water quality and scenic values of this Wapsipinicon River corridor. The easement permanently protects the land from mining, development, clear cutting, over-grazing and other activities that could diminish the area’s natural resources and scenery.

Its restrictions apply to the Grovers and all future owners. Its benefits apply to them — and to all living things in this area and downstream.

Andrea L. Zimmerman is a Drake University student and Robert R. Buckmaster Intern at INHF.

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