Your Land Your Legacy

Your Land, Your Legacy Conserving Our Way of Life in Southcentral Alaska

CREATING A CONSERVATION LEGACY

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s one of the fastest growing regions in the country, Southcentral Alaska has seen its population double in the last 20 years, with continued growth expected for the foreseeable future.

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his rapid growth has brought many good things to the region – jobs, cultural diversity and new ideas. Great Land Trust (GLT), a local non-profit land trust, is working with many partners to bring something else to the region, a Conservation Legacy.

Dale Saunder’s Crane Sanctuary Prior to his passing in 2003, Dale Saunders donated his 80 acre farm in Trapper Creek to GLT with an agreement that his property would be farmed in perpetuity for the benefit of Sandhill Cranes that have used the farm as a spring and fall migration “snack stop” since the 1950’s.

Roy & Ann Goodman’s Conservation Easement In 2005, Roy and Ann Goodman placed a conservation easement on 10 acres of their 20 acre property bordering the Palmer Hay Flats Refuge State Game Refuge (see large photo below). Now the wetlands and the portion of Spring Creek that flows through their property into the Refuge will be conserved as a baby salmon nursery & wildlife corridor forever.

Campbell Creek Estuary Natural Area Park From the mountains to the sea, conserving the Campbell Creek Estuary was a major victory for Anchorage residents.

Now the city’s newest park, the public can enjoy glorious coastal views of wildlife and take a walk along the new nature trail. This historic homestead is now beginning a new chapter as a wild gem in the middle of Alaska’s biggest city.

GLT worked with the McManamin family to permanently conserve this area and leave a lasting legacy. GLT holds a conservation easement over the property ensuring it will be maintained as a natural scenic area for the public to enjoy forever.

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laskans who choose to conserve their family lands create a legacy for future generations and our state.

MAPPING COMMUNITY ASSETS Alaskans enjoy an outdoor lifestyle that depends on healthy natural areas and access public lands.

Whether it’s hiking, biking, fishing or hunting having close to home outdoor places to play is the reason many people live in Southcentral. Through our Community Asset Mapping project, GLT is working with community councils, cities, and/or neighborhood groups to identify the lands types important for maintaining the Alaskan way of life. This includes reviewing maps over a series of meetings and talking about where the parks and trails, salmon streams, moose habitat, wetlands and important open spaces are within a specific area. This process allows GLT to talk with residents about the special lands within their community that support the wellbeing of residents and discuss the conservation options available to protect these vital assets.

This project offers the community an opportunity to tell us where they think we should concentrate our conservation efforts and helps communities think about where the less sensitive lands are that could be open for development including roads, utilities, public facilities, residential subdivisions, businesses and/or commercial areas.

Where Are They?

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Watersheds

LT practices conservation that retains our Alaskan character; benefits our fish and wildlife populations; strengthens the local economy by prociding a basis for thousands of high quality resource management jobs; and enhances the livability and health of all our Alaskan communities.

Salmon Streams

Estuaries

Farmland

Wetlands

Protected Areas

Benefit to Residents

clean water

farms

nature

way of life recreation

explore

family

wild foods

love of the land

salmon wildlife

health

A DEEP CONNECTION TO THE LAND “I want my grandson to have the same fishing and hunting opportunities that I grew up with here in the Valley.” ~ Scott Walther

“This is the last great wilderness left under the American flag, almost the world. Our children and their children deserve to find some of it as wild, unspoiled, unique, and exciting as we found it.” ~George Harbeson

“In the last three years changes have occurred. The view along our peaceful country lane has dramatically changed and now includes a gravel pit and a new subdivision.

But thanks to a conservation easement, our lake and the property around it will be protected and provide a quiet refuge amidst the growing development in Valley.”

~ Rocky & Sue Goodwin

“Without the serenity of fields and woods, animals and friendly birds in their natural setting, a private educational institution can offer only book learning, not real education.”

~ Louise Kellogg

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“We are honored to work with Great Land Trust to protect key habitat as well as generate revenue for our shareholders and the community. ” ~Curtis McQueen, Eklutna Native Corporation CEO

lease join us in building this legacy for our children and grandchildren.

our Land, Your Legacy.

About GLT

Connecting communities with their backyard

Through a community conservation effort, GLT purchased 1,000 acres of private land adjacent to Machetanz Elementary School and donated it as an expansion to the Palmer Hay Flats State Game Refuge for permanent public access. The land is home to all five species of salmon, moose, bears, river otters; 167 species of waterfowl and migratory birds; and spectacular views and year-round recreation. GLT is building a trail that will provide an easy way for people to experience the Refuge and the beauty in our own backyard.

G LT C o n s e r va t i o n P r i o r i t i e s :

Recreational Lands: that give communities close-to-home access to parks, trails, and public lands. For many, recreational lands serve as a retreat from our busy modern lives, and access to them is part of the Alaskan way of life and culture.

Working Lands: include those that have historically been farmed or those that contain soil types or forest cover that produce food and timber products. These lands provide land-based livelihoods and allow rural residents to engage in the way of life that have defined Alaska for the past 100 years.

GLT creates access to our lands-->

7 pathways to public lands 5 trails and boardwalks 7 city parks

GLT conserves our most valuable lands and waterways--> 43 miles of salmon streams 6,000 acres of wetlands 7 historic homesteads 8 estuaries

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Natural Lands: with unique ecological features, community value, and scenic beauty. These include large tracts of undeveloped forest that provide habitat, migration corridors, and refuge for countless populations of wildlife; stream corridors important for fish spawning and rearing; and wetlands important for migratory birds and regional water quality.

Great Land Trust Mat-Su Valley Office Koslosky Center, Suite 202 Palmer, AK 99645 (907) 746-6406 & Anchorage Office 715 L St., Suite 200 Anchorage, AK 99501 (907) 278-4998 www.greatlandtrust.org

f we take care of the land, the land will take care of us.

Special thanks for all the photos to Robin Song, Tim Remick, Carl Johnson, and Tim Leach.