Chris Brown

 

The Nature Conservancy: Legacy Preserve Today and Tomorrow 

The Nature Conservancy first bought their first piece of land along the eastern shore of the Great Salt Lake in 1983. Today the lands known as the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve have grown to over 5000 acres. These lands were either purchased, gifted or purchased with funds from donors, grants or partners that include the Mitigation Commission, NAWCA and Lee Ray Macalister just to name a few. Today the Nature Conservancy manages lands owned by the Mitigation Commission with their support and funding. Conservation Easements are also a tool used to protect those lands we deem necessary for a healthy Great Salt Lake ecosystem. As land becomes less available for conservation along the Great Salt Lake TNC has moved into a new phase of management along the lake, Mitigation Properties. Recently TNC has begun oversight and management of the Legacy Nature Preserve. This property was mitigation set aside for the impacts from the Legacy Highway Project. Today there are many challenges and management issues that face the current preserve. From noxious weeds to development they all shape the preserve TNC manages today. Mr. Brown will give us an update on Legacy, the current projects as well as discuss the challenges, success and failures in management of the Legacy Preserve. He will also discuss the future of Legacy and how it fits into the current framework of the Great Salt Lake as well as future considerations when we consider mitigation.

Chris Brown is the Director of Stewardship Programs for the Utah Chapter of the Nature Conservancy.  Born and raised in Utah, he earned a degree in range science from Utah State University.  His duties include actively managing the Conservancy’s preserves statewide to restore and enhance habitat, conduct surveys and monitoring, and maintain and repair facilities and equipment. He began his work with The Nature Conservancy in 2002; prior to coming to TNC, he was a rangeland management specialist with the US Forest Service in Utah and a habitat manager with the State of Idaho Division of Wildlife. In his free time, he enjoys birding, boating, and hunting. When needed, he makes a pretty good cowboy too.
Black-necked stilt at the Legacy Nature Preserve by Eric McCulley

Black-necked stilt at the Legacy Nature Preserve by Eric McCulley