The Land Trust of Santa Cruz County is thrilled by the amazing support our local community (and beyond!) has shown for the Highway 17 wildlife crossing! The first year of data is in and we’re excited to share who has been using the tunnel, what we’ve learned and give you a peek at what’s next!

Easement Coordinator Hannah Hughes takes you through a day of monitoring some of the Land Trust's agricultural easements!

Support land conservation in Santa Cruz County by becoming a member of the Land Trust! https://landtrustsantacruz.org/donate...

The known range of the Santa Cruz long-toed salamander, only 50 square miles between Aptos and Castroville, has been fragmented by highways and roads creating meta-populations that can’t breed with each other. Crossings at Highway 1 would safely reconnect them and help in the recovery of this endangered species.

The sustainable timber harvest operation is under way at the Byrne-Milliron Forest. Periodic, strategic harvests are creating a dynamic and healthy forest at Byrne-Milliron. Trees are selected to be harvested based on how it will most benefit the remaining standing forest. Sometimes that looks like taking out a tree to allow others to access more sunlight and grow stronger and taller. With this kind of progressive foresight, it turns out that the trees at Byrne-Milliron grow really fast! The forest is actually gaining mass overall even with occasional harvests.

Thanks to Big Creek Lumber for initiating these kinds of sustainable timber harvest practices in the Santa Cruz Mountains! Their crew is doing a great job out there!

Learn more about the sustainable timber harvest on our website: https://landtrustsantacruz.org/protec...