~ Agreement will protect jobs, wildlife habitat and outdoor recreational opportunities ~

Saint Paul – Governor Pawlenty today announced the single largest conservation project in Minnesota in a decade. State and private money has been used to purchase working forest conservation easements on more than 51,163 acres of forest in Itasca and Koochiching counties.

The $12 million investment prevents subdivision and development of almost 80 square miles of forest land while protecting jobs, preserving wildlife habitat and guaranteeing public access for outdoor recreation. The agreement to pursue easements on the land was first announced in 2006 by the Trust for Public Land, Forest Capital Partners, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and The Nature Conservancy.

“A key aspect of this landmark agreement is that the land will continue to be managed for timber production and continue to provide jobs and revenue for local economies as private land,” Governor Tim Pawlenty said. “It will be open to the public for a wide variety of uses, including hunting, hiking and fishing. Minnesotans have always taken great pride in our vast forests and this achievement is a testament to our long-term commitment to responsible stewardship of our heritage and future.”

To purchase the conservation easement on 11,824 acres in Itasca County and 39,339 acres in Koochiching County, the DNR contributed $6.6 million through bond funds appropriated by the Minnesota Legislature in 2006. The Nature Conservancy also contributed $5.4 million via gifts from: the Blandin Foundation, $4.0 million; The Conservation Fund, $500,000; and a variety of other sources including the Surdna Foundation.

The newly-conserved lands are located near almost 440,000 acres of the Koochiching State Forest, George Washington State Forest, Myrtle Lake Peatland State Natural Area and Scenic State Park.

Because of its proximity to the two state forests, the project is being called the Koochiching-Washington Forest Legacy Project.

This is the second and largest project to be completed by the Minnesota Forest Legacy Partnership, a public-private coalition created two years ago by The Nature Conservancy and the Blandin Foundation to help conserve Minnesota’s Northwoods. The partnership’s first project, known as Sugar Hills, was completed in May 2007 and ensured that 1,600 acres in Itasca County would remain a publicly-accessible working forest.

The partnership includes the Trust for Public Land, which facilitated the transaction in the latest Forest Legacy project between the landowner (Forest Capital Partners) and the state, and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR), which will hold and monitor the conservation easement. Additional partnership members are The Conservation Fund, the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce, the Minnesota Forest Resources Council and the Minnesota Deer Hunters Association (MDHA).

Forest Capital Partners is a private forest landowner that acquires and manages working forests across North America for long-term sustainability, including more than 290,000 acres in northern Minnesota. The company actively manages its forests under the sustainable forest management guidelines set forth by the Sustainable Forestry Initiative®. Under the recently-completed voluntary agreement, Forest Capital Partners retains ownership as well as the right to continue to manage their land for timber production.

Jim Hoolihan, president of the Blandin Foundation, said that more must be done to ensure that lands owned by timber companies in northern Minnesota continue to be managed so that they provide jobs, wildlife habitat and public access for outdoor recreation.

“Traditionally, these lands have played an important role in our way of life,” Hoolihan said. “But due to rising real estate prices and changes in the forest products industry, we’ve lost industrial forestland to development. This project will ensure that this property remains a publicly-accessible working forest.”

Peggy Ladner, director of The Nature Conservancy in Minnesota, said that the project’s sheer size and its proximity to two state forests, a state natural area and a state park, which added together total 439,652 acres, made it a priority for conservation.

“Saving 51,163 acres of forest is great work but when those lands combine with existing public natural areas to create a conservation area that approaches 500,000 acres, it’s an absolutely incredible and enduring accomplishment,” Ladner said. “To protect our natural heritage for now and for our future, we need to conserve our lands and waters at a landscape scale.”

Editors: additional media materials, including photos, map and fact sheet are available at www.dnr.state.mn.us/news/forestlegacy/index.html