Thanks to a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the land conservation organization now has $16.6 million to put towards open space.
It’s the only grant awarded to a Utah conservation project out of a total $1.5 billion the USDA will distribute to projects across the U.S.
Utah Open Lands executive director Wendy Fisher said the funding will be used to help preserve parts of the North Fields and beyond.
“This provides a moment for us to do additional leveraging so that we can protect as much of the legacy landscape that is in the Heber Valley as possible,” she said.
That doesn’t include properties Utah Open Lands has already secured funding for.
The money will also not be used for the Gertsch property, which can’t be conserved until the Utah Department of Transportation announces the bypass route.
Fisher said the next steps include prioritizing projects. From there, each property will go through the easement process with Wasatch County or Midway.
“Folks are contemplating a potential open space bond that’s on the ballot in Midway City,” she said.
If the $5 million bond passes in November, the federal dollars could accomplish even more in the Heber Valley.
Wasatch County Councilmember Steve Farrell said he’s glad to see Utah Open Lands receive the funding.
“This means quite a bit to me, because it’s something we’ve been working for [over] the last 10 years,” he said.
His fellow councilmember, Luke Searle, said it’s encouraging to get news of the grant.
“If you had asked me five years ago if this was possible, to save the land in the North Fields, I probably would have said no,” he said. “But honestly, the Utah Open Lands’ determination to leverage the county open space dollars… and their work to get a grant just like this means that really meaningful preservation in the North Fields is possible and is going to happen.”
According to a press release from Utah Open Lands, protecting county land will also help protect water for the region.
The more than $16 million grant is part of a federal program to protect natural resources while responding to climate change.
