FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media Contact: Darryl Seibel, Darryl@ccalt.org , 720-557-8266

July 29, 2025

STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, Colo. – The Colorado Cattlemen’s Agricultural Land Trust (CCALT) announces the completion of a new 160-acre conservation easement with Alice and Joseph Greene on an inholding in Routt National Forest. In a remote area that straddles Routt and Rio Blanco Counties, the new Mountain Meadows Ranch conservation easement supports Routt County’s commitment to conserve agricultural landscapes that contribute to the region’s rural character. Support from the Routt County Purchase of Development Rights Program (PDR) ensures the land will not be divided and can always be available for agricultural operations, adding to the more than 81,410 acres of working land CCALT and landowners have conserved together in Routt and Rio Blanco Counties.

”CCALT partnered with the Greenes to conserve their unique forest inholding, preserving important wildlife habitat and water rights,” said CCALT Conservation Manager Monica Shields. “Additionally, the conservation easement will ensure this landscape will continue to support a local agricultural operation now and for future generations.”

The Mountain Meadows conservation easement lies roughly 15 miles southwest of the town of Oak Creek. Aspen forests, aspen-conifer forests, and an irrigated hay meadow together comprise three-quarters of the property’s area. Trout Creek and Whitney Creek flow through the property to support hay production and the natural landscape that sustains wildlife habitat and movement through the area. The Greenes have owned the property since 2016, returning to the area where Alice grew up. They use their water right to irrigate a hay meadow and sell the hay they produce to local farmers. Conserving the property helps ensure the historical agricultural use of the property can continue and that the property remains available for future agricultural uses.

“We appreciate the opportunity to work with CCALT and Routt County PDR,” said Alice and Joseph Greene. “It is important to us to be assured that our property is protected from development for all posterity. It is our hope that our children and grandchildren will enjoy the property and its agricultural roots for generations to come.”

While haying operations have been recorded on the property for more than 40 years, the extended history of the property is largely unknown. However, the conservation easement also preserves part of the cultural history in the area by including an old homestead cabin from the 1880s that still stands on the property. It is easy to see why people settled there. The property supports scenic vistas that include natural mountainsides, forests, and meadows and the surrounding Routt National Forest and agricultural valleys.

The conservation easement will not only allow the Greene family to continue to run their irrigation operation, but it will also add to the existing block of conservation easements that PDR and CCALT have partnered on in the Trout Creek Valley over the past several years.

“This is a project that’s a really clear example of how the PDR program continues to serve the long-term interests of our County, and it’s really just smart, strategic conservation that benefits future generations. So, thank you,” said Routt County Commissioner Angelica Salinas.

About the Colorado Cattlemen’s Agricultural Land Trust

The mission of the Colorado Cattlemen’s Agricultural Land Trust is to conserve Colorado’s Western heritage and working landscapes for the benefit of future generations. Since 1995, CCALT has partnered with over 400 families to conserve more than 810,000 acres of Colorado farmland, ranchland, open space, and wildlife habitat. Mountain Meadows marks CCALT’s 400th easement.

About the Routt County Purchase of Development Rights Program (PDR)

The Routt County Purchase of Development Rights (PDR) program is a land protection tool in which a property’s development rights are purchased from willing landowners. Funding for the PDR Program is derived from a 1.5 mill levy in County property tax approved by voters through 2035. In exchange for County funds, the landowner grants a perpetual conservation easement, or deed restriction on the property, thereby permanently protecting the land from development. The PDR Program provides landowners an economically attractive alternative to selling land for development by compensating them for the development rights on their land. Ownership of the property remains vested with the landowner, who can use and manage the property consistent with the terms of the conservation easement. Since the initiation of the PDR Program in 1997, the County has helped fund the purchase of conservation easements on almost 73,000 acres, at a cost just over $35 million.

Members of the media: for more information, please contact Darryl Seibel, CCALT Director of External Relations, at (720) 557-8266 or darryl@ccalt.org.