San Isabel Land Protection Trust and Colorado Open Lands are excited to announce they have merged operations, energizing conservation and stewardship efforts in this special part of Colorado.
Colorado Open Lands and San Isabel will work to keep our region wild and beautiful, with abundant wildlife, productive agriculture, flowing water and thriving rural communities.
Private lands are important to our health, wealth and heritage. We work with landowners to protect the precious resources that define our region.
A conservation easement is a voluntary agreement between a private landowner and a land trust that permanently restricts and defines the amount and type of development permitted on a property. When a landowner’s vision for their property is one of little change, a conservation easement can be a useful tool. We don't tell landowners how to manage their land, but focus on the big picture by preventing subdivision, inappropriate industry and the sale of agricultural water rights.
"The Hood Family placed a conservation easement on our ranch because it gave us a chance to preserve the land as undeveloped property while allowing the operation of the ranch to continue to make ranching decisions as we have always done. It also provided funding to establish retirement funds and an investment portfolio, providing long-term income."
– Keith Hood, fifth-generation rancher
Conservation easements guarantee long-term protection – through generations of landowners.