Pub Talk Re-Cap: Conservation Banks in the N. Fork Poudre Watershed
Ben Guillon with Conservation Investment Management presented information about conservation banks and how landowners can benefit from this conservation tool.
On Wednesday, May 8th, SCT members and folks from the Livermore community gathered at The Forks Mercantile and Saloon, in Livermore, CO, to learn about the Conservation Bank that has been established in our watershed for the Preble’s Meadow Jumping Mouse (PMJM). This conservation bank, which differs from a wetland bank, will pay landowners to restore and conserve riparian areas below 7,600 feet in elevation for PMJM.
How did this bank come to be and how does it work? The US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) has a mitigation hierarchy for species, including avoidance of impacts, minimization of impacts, and compensation for impacts. The Conservation Bank is a method for compensation; projects that will cause negative impacts to habitat for PMJM can purchase credits from the conservation bank to compensate for their impact. The Conservation Bank will use funds from credits to improve habitat quality primarily through activities such as riparian plantings and regenerative grazing plans in collaboration with willing landowners. The Conservation Bank takes all the risk, sets up the project, covers all costs, and manages each project through to completion in partnership with landowners. Landowners receive a royalty payment for each credit sold. In addition, the Conservation Bank will set up an endowment to pay for the long term maintenance of the property after project completion.
What does the process look like? After an initial conversation with the Conservation Bank (contact Ben Guillon, his info is below), the Conservation Bank would assess your property. If it can generate credits, the Conservation Bank may offer to enter into a lease on a portion of your property. If you accept the lease, you will need to place a conservation easement on the property to start generating credits. The project would then enter a planning phase (typically 2-3 years) which allows for passive recovery and development of a restoration plan. After implementation of the project, monitoring is continued for at least 5 years. The landowner can expect a 10-year timeframe total.
Want to learn more? Contact Ben Guillon with Conservation Investment Management. His phone number is (720) 443-3879, and his email is Ben@ConservationInvestment.com.
