December 9, 2002

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Stephen Slade 728-5939

ELKHORN SLOUGH FOUNDATION PROTECTS TWO RANCHES
IN UPPER ELKHORN SLOUGH

The Elkhorn Slough Foundation announced the purchase of two ranches in North Monterey County near Las Lomas (map, photos). The ranch lands protect 535 acres and are the first purchases since the Foundation announced in June that it planned to double the lands it protects by acquiring 2,000 acres over the next three years.

The ranches adjoin Carneros Creek, which supplies Elkhorn Slough with 70% of its fresh water. Elkhorn Slough Foundation Executive Director Mark Silberstein said the Foundation will restore a 17 acre fresh water marsh and protect another 20 acres of creekside vegetation on the lands. These steps will help reduce sediment build up in the slough. To reduce soil erosion the Foundation will also manage upland slopes that were previously cultivated.

"What you do on the land determines what goes into the Slough," Silberstein said. The Foundation will plant the steepest erosion-prone slopes with deep-rooted native grasses and build sediment catch basins to further reduce erosion and run-off. Other lands will be sustainably farmed, Silberstein said.

Both properties are adjacent to other ranches protected by the Foundation. The Brothers Ranch (356 acres) is west of 3 M Ranch, which was protected by the Foundation previously through conservation easements. The El Chamisal Ranch (201 acres) adjoins land owned by The Nature Conservancy and managed by the Elkhorn Slough Foundation. The Foundation leases farm land on other properties it manages.

"Ensuring economically viable and environmentally sustainable agriculture is the key to the long-term protection of the Slough," Silberstein said. "We are committed to both sustainable farming and protecting critical natural environments." The ranches include more than 90 acres of oak woodland and 80 acres of maritime chaparral, a rare habitat that occurs only along the sandy ridges of the Central Coast.

The latest purchases are the first since the Elkhorn Slough Foundation announced plans to protect 2,000 more acres over the next three years. The Foundation now owns or manages more than 2,500 acres, including 800 acres owned by the Nature Conservancy, and holds conservation easements on 230 acres. Silberstein said negotiations are underway on several other properties in the Elkhorn Slough watershed.

To support caring for the lands it is purchasing, the Foundation has established a Stewardship Fund and an endowment. "Our commitment is to care for these lands forever," said Silberstein. In June the Foundation established a Stewardship Circle for those contributing $1,000 or more a year. "Our goal is to have 100 members by the time we double the amount of land we protect in 2005," said Development Director Stephen Slade. In just four months 26 people have joined the Stewardship Circle.

During that time the Foundation also received a $90,000 endowment gift from the estate of Burrel Leonard, a Cupertino businessman.

"We have the funds for acquisition," said Silberstein. "What we need are funds to care for the land we are acquiring." As an example, Silberstein said the Foundation spent $60,000 within the last month to build sediment catch basins and take other steps to reduce soil runoff into Elkhorn Slough. "We will keep thousands of tons of sediment out of the Slough," Silberstein said. "Ultimately, that's what all of this is about: keeping Elkhorn Slough clean, healthy, and productive."

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PRESS ADVISORY: Press tours of these ranches are available.

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