Large area in La Honda enters conservation

“The permanent protection of Camp Jones Gulch feels like a milestone moment for conservation in the Santa Cruz mountains,” Matt Shaffer, chief marketing and communications officer for Sempervirens Fund said. “It ensures that a special, ecologically rich property is going to be conserved forever.”

Elementary students in San Mateo County have visited Camp Jones Gulch since 1968, with the money from the conservation easement contributing to new facility construction, replacing cabins and upgrading decades-old buildings, according to Shaffer. In addition to the summer program, the San Mateo County Office of Education uses the camp and a small portion of the land for its renowned Outdoor Education program for fifth and sixth grade students in county public schools. The famous program hosts 5,500 students each year for a week to learn about the forest and beach ecosystems.

The area also has 39 acres of rare old-growth redwood forest, 668 acres of young-growth redwood and other woodlands. Shaffer said the area was a sizable unprotected block in one of the most extensive areas of protected land in the county. Areas vulnerable to development or timber harvesting that could degrade the surrounding conservation lands led to Sempervirens Fund prioritizing protecting it. Becoming a partner with the YMCA was a rare opportunity to care for the ecosystem, Shaffer said.

“It’s becoming rarer and rarer we are able to ensure conservation of properties of this size but of this ecological richness,” Shaffer said. “This was, in some ways, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”

The easement cost $9.6 million and an additional $422,000 contribution for a stewardship fund to manage it. Funding comes from Sempervirens Fund donors and various foundations and boards.

A conservation easement is a legal tool that protects natural resources like redwood trees by limiting building, development and logging on the property without buying the title to the property itself. It requires future landowners to also commit to preserving the site. Sempervirens Fund has been working toward the agreement since earlier in the year. Shaffer believes using conservation easements will only grow in the coming years for others looking to protect lands. Shaffer said the YMCA was previously looking at options to keep itself financially viable, like timber harvesting.

“This long-term relationship means we can sustain our work at Camp Jones Gulch, be great stewards of our lands and help connect children to nature in new and exciting ways. Our commitment to nature has been ongoing for more than 80 years and provides the resources needed to inspire young people for another 80 years,” Jamie Bruning-Miles, president of the YMCA of San Francisco, said in a press release.

Shaffer said his organization would look at invasive species removal and fuel reduction management on the property and coordinate efforts with other agencies to protect the land, which was only a few miles from the CZU complex fires, a collection of 20 wildfires caused by thousands of lightning strikes which burned more than 85,000 acres of land across San Mateo and Santa Cruz counties.

In the future, Sempervirens Fund will continue to look at opportunities for additional conservation easements in the area and reducing wildfire risk.

curtis@smdailyjournal.com

(650) 344-5200 ext. 102

Note to readers: This story has been changed. It had previously incorrectly misattributed quotations to Blake Case. The correct attributions are to Matt Shaffer, chief marketing and communications officer for Sempervirens Fund.