Sublette County Ranch conserved in memory of Bettine Moore Close
by Wyoming Stock Growers Land Trust
January 7, 2016
MARBLETON - The Wyoming Stock Growers Land Trust ("WSGLT") today (Thursday, January 7, 2016) announced the completion of another agricultural conservation easement in Sublette County. According to Bo Alley, Executive Director of WSGLT, "This is an extremely important project both agriculturally and ecologically. This easement connects two other large family-run ranching operations that have been secured via conservation easements with WSGLT, assuring these lands will continue to produce food and fiber and permanently remain undeveloped."
The 1,000 acre ranch, owned by actress Glenn Close, is situated along North Piney Creek, which is a tributary of the Green River. North Piney Creek and its associated uplands provide Crucial Habitat Ranges for moose as well as Seasonal Habitat Ranges for mule deer, pronghorn antelope, and elk. The ranch is entirely inside sage grouse core area and is within two miles of the sage grouse winter concentration area as designated by the WGFD Pinedale regional office.
"The project came together very quickly, and was really driven by the desire of Ms. Close to ensure her family ranch be conserved in the memory of her mother," Alley said.
Ms. Close noted, "My daughter, Annie, and I are overjoyed that we have been able to preserve our 1000 acres, in perpetuity, with the collaboration of the Wyoming Stock Growers Land Trust, in the name of our beloved mother and grandmother, Bettine Moore Close. The new nature reserve was her sanctuary and brought her peace and great joy. She was passionate about animals and the natural world and spent many hours on the land. We are thrilled that we will always have a place to come to in Sublette County. The Bettine Moore Close Nature Reserve will always represent the heart and soul of our beloved "Moo."
With the completion of this conservation easement, WSGLT has now partnered with nearly a dozen families and conserved over 47,000 acres of ag-land in Sublette County.
About the Wyoming Stock Growers Land Trust
The Stock Growers Land Trust is dedicated to conservation through ranching. Based in Cheyenne, the non-profit organization serves the entire state and is Wyoming’s only agricultural land trust. Through partnerships with ranch families, the Stock Growers Land Trust holds and stewards conservation easements on more than 228,916 acres of land on ranches and farms throughout Wyoming. Founded in 2000 by the 140-year-old Wyoming Stock Growers Association, it is one of the largest among the 1,659 regional land trusts in the United States. For more information, visit www.wsgalt.org.
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