Butte Creek Meadows Working Forest Conservation Easement

Butte Creek Meadows

Working Forest Conservation Easement

Straddling the divide between the Klamath and the Sacramento River Basins, Butte Creek Meadows is home to headwaters that provide cold, clear water for people and an abundance of wildlife, including endangered salmon.

For more than 150 years, the Hart family has owned and managed Butte Creek Meadows, a 3,468 acre ranch, located on the northeastern slopes of Mt. Shasta in the heart of the Klamath-Cascade region. The family recognized the land’s unique ecological value early on, carefully balancing their timber and cattle operations to protect water sources and wildlife habitat, while enhancing the land’s natural beauty and resources.

We partnered with the Hart family to establish a working forest conservation easement to permanently conserve all of Butte Creek Meadows, ensuring sustainable management of the land for generations to come. The conservation easement will prevent the future break up or development of the ranch, support the family’s outstanding cattle and timber management practices, and protect the abundant water, diverse forests, and intact, rare wet meadow system on the property. Conservation of Butte Creek Meadows also secures a strategically important wildlife corridor which connects the Shasta-Trinity National Forest and the Klamath National Forest, and enhances habitat for imperiled species such as the northern spotted owl and the Pacific fisher.

The Harts were inspired to protect this land by recalling the sacrifices made by their ancestor, Louisa Hart, who journeyed by boat from New York and rode a mule across the Isthmus of Panama carrying her two diaper-clad sons to make Hart Ranch and Butte Creek Meadows her home. She stewarded the land with tenacity until her death at age 87. Today, Butte Creek Meadows is owned by Susan and Blair Hart, their daughter Alexandra, Blair’s sister, Laura Hyde,  Blair’s cousins, Pam Piemme and Mary Silva, as well as Mary’s husband Tocho Silva.

Meet the Harts

Butte Creek Meadows Hart Family

From left to right:
Blair, Alex, and Susan Hart

“A conservation easement makes it financially possible for us to continue good stewardship. This is our contribution to California’s forests and wildlife. You do it because it’s the right thing to do.”

– Susan Hart

Why Conserve this Property?

It Benefits Natural Water Systems

Butte Creek Meadows provides water important for drinking, agriculture, and aquatic habitat. The working forest conservation easement established on this property, will conserve over 2,660 acres of diverse, healthy forest, 650-acres of rare wet meadow habitat, and a 4-mile stretch of Butte Creek, part of the Klamath Basin. Natural water systems like these are part of California’s  infrastructure that directs glacier fed spring water from Mt. Shasta to faucets hundreds of miles away.

Why Conserve This Property?

It Mitigates Climate Change

The carbon rich forests, grasslands, and wetlands of Butte Creek Meadows naturally help reduce greenhouse gases building in our atmosphere by pulling CO2 out of the air and storing it in the vegetation and soil. The high timber stocking of the property means it has more carbon stored than most forests. Under the terms of the working forest conservation easement, the Harts are protecting these immense carbon stores and ensuring this carbon continues to accumulate through careful management.

Why Conserve this Property?

It Provides Educational and Scenic Enjoyment

Public access to Butte Creek Meadows is available through docent-led tours that will let people learn more about sustainable forestry, cattle ranching, and the wildlife that depend on its special habitats. Hikers in the neighboring National Forests and climbers on Mt. Shasta can enjoy the beautiful vistas overlooking Butte Creek Meadows, too.

Why Conserve This Property?

It Supports the Local Economy

Timber, cattle, and public enjoyment of the great outdoors are three pillars of Siskiyou County’s economy, collectively providing 16% of local jobs. Conserving Butte Creek Meadows will keep it working, providing timber, water, wildlife habitat, and cattle to benefit the local community and beyond.

Why Conserve This Property?

It Saves Wildlife Habitat

With a mosaic of vegetation types, rare habitat elements, and water resources, wildlife is abundant on Butte Creek Meadows. More than 63 animal species find life-sustaining habitat here. Conserving Butte Creek Meadows will strategically help wildlife on the move as they adapt to changing climate and habitat conditions. The conservation easement will create a corridor of protected land that links the Shasta-Trinity National Forest to the Klamath National Forest.

Connecting a Larger Forest Landscape

From Louisa Hart through six successive generations who have worked the property, the family members see the ranch as more than just a piece of land but rather a part of a larger landscape with important ecological, economic, and human benefits.
Butte Creek Map

Butte Creek Meadows is surrounded by the Shasta-Trinity and Klamath National Forests in the heart of the Klamath-Cascade region. By permanently protecting the property with a working forest conservation easement, the landowners contributed important gains for the economy and environment in Siskiyou County, CA. This region provides a majority of California’s drinking water, is the center of the timber industry, and is a home to one of the world’s most diverse conifer forests. We are proud partners of the Butte Creek Meadows property owners who have long stewarded the land and publicly declared that they are dedicated to do their part to conserve and sustain this vital, productive forest landscape.

Who Lives There?

Many species call Butte Creek Meadows and the surrounding landscape home. Learn more about the species in this area.

This Project Conserves Diverse Habitats

Butte Creek Meadows is made up of twelve unique habitat types. Explore a few of the habitats that support animals, including elk, native trout, and seven rare or threatened species.

Conservation Project Partners

Thanks to our partners for collaborating to ensure the natural values of this land are conserved for future generations!

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