Lying only 25 miles north of Truckee, Sierra Valley is an enormous basin that gathers the headwaters of the Middle Fork Feather River and sends them winding northward in a mosaic of waving grasses and meandering water. Uniquely situated where the Sierra Nevada, the Great Basin and the Cascades converge, the valley is a hot spot of biodiversity. In fact, Sierra Valley supports the greatest diversity and abundance of birds in the Sierra Nevada.

For thousands of years the Washoe people flourished here, sustaining themselves on plentiful game, fish and other natural bounty. European immigrants began to arrive at the time of the Gold Rush, establishing ranches that served mining communities west of the Sierra Crest. Today private ranches cover virtually the entire valley floor, many still owned by descendants of settlers who arrived in the 19th century.  

In 1999, conservationists started teaming up with landowners and public agencies to conserve Sierra Valley for agriculture and for wildlife. By 2016, those efforts had succeeded in protecting over 25% of the 120,000-acre valley floor with conservation easements. To maintain the momentum of those efforts, the Feather River Land Trust, The Nature Conservancy and the Northern Sierra Partnership submitted an application to the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Regional Conservation Partnership Program to support the expansion of our conservation efforts in Sierra Valley. In early 2016, we got great news: NRCS had approved our request for $9 million in funding for conservation easements in Sierra Valley!  

Since that time, the Feather River Land Trust and The Nature Conservancy have reached out to landowners all over Sierra Valley to discuss their conservation options.  As a result of this work, the Partners have conserved over 12,000 acres of important habitat on ranches around Sierra Valley, increasing the total acres conserved to 48,000 acres.  Conservation easements undertaken as part of this program will be held by the Feather River Land Trust and monitored at least once annually to ensure that the easement terms are being met.

To learn more or to apply for an easement under this program, please contact FRLT Land Protection Manager, Kristi Jamason, at kjamason@frlt.org.

Photo credits: Sierra Valley © Andy Wright | Pronghorn © Andy Wright | Barn ©Darby Hayes | Ibis © Darby Hayes | Flag Iris © Darby Hayes | Sandhill Crane © Darby Hayes | Sierra Valley Cows © Deborah O’Grady