Quick Facts:
- 186-acre working walnut orchard near the city of Lincoln
- Protected in 2022 by Agricultural Conservation Easement
- The first permanently protected commercial nut orchard in Placer County
- Located on Doty Ravine, about half a mile west of Placer Land Trust’s Doty Ravine Preserve, and near other conserved lands
- Funding was provided by California Climate Investments and special reserve funding donated by our members over the years for agricultural conservation
About the Preserve
Doty Creek Ranch is a working walnut orchard near Lincoln. Placer Land Trust purchased the Agricultural Conservation Easement from the landowners at market value. The easement permanently protects the property from subdivision and development while allowing the landowners to continue their agricultural operations.
Placer County remains one of the fastest-growing counties in California, and the growth of Lincoln has been particularly explosive, with hundreds or even thousands of acres of farmland being converted to development every year. The agricultural easement allows the landowners to realize some of the value that would have come from selling for development, while keeping their land in agricultural production.
Conservation Values
The property is located on Doty Creek, about half a mile west of Placer Land Trust’s Doty Ravine Preserve, and near other conserved lands. Together, these properties form a larger area of protected lands along the waterway, providing habitat and migration paths for a wide variety of wildlife in addition to ensuring these lands will continue to support agriculture.
Creatively Meeting Funding Challenges
The majority of the funds for the Doty Creek Ranch project were made available through the California Strategic Growth Council’s Sustainable Agricultural Lands Conservation Program (SALC) in collaboration with the Department of Conservation. SALC is part of California Climate Investments, a statewide initiative that puts billions of Cap-and-Trade dollars to work reducing greenhouse gas emissions, strengthening the economy, and improving public health and the environment – particularly in disadvantaged communities.
These State funds were to be supplemented by federal grant funds, but federal funding fell through at the last minute and Placer Land Trust tapped special reserve funding donated by land trust members over the years for agricultural conservation. The landowners also contributed a significant amount to complete the project and ensure the permanent protection of the orchard.
Protecting Farmland in Rural Placer County
The Agricultural Conservation Easement is permanent and runs with title to the land, meaning that any future landowners will be prohibited from subdividing and developing the property. This provides benefits not only to the property itself, but also to the neighbors who should enjoy seeing less growth and greater property values, to our community that benefits from our continued agricultural economy, and to everyone who values the beauty, bounty, and quality of life of rural Placer County.
“Our agricultural lands are really attractive for development, but the real value of these lands is food production by local farmers and ranchers. We’re pleased to provide conservation funding to local farmers and ranchers who are willing to protect their productive agricultural lands forever.”
Jeff Darlington, Placer Land Trust Executive Director
Doty Creek Ranch is privately owned and not open to the public. For a list of our properties that have public trails, visit our Trails page.
