This is a press release submitted to Vegas INC. It has not been verified or edited by Vegas INC.
Press Release
Nevada Copper- Conservation Easement
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NEWS RELEASE
NEVADA COPPER – CONSERVATION EASEMENT
September 5, 2012 - Nevada Copper, Inc. ("Nevada Copper") is pleased to announce that the company has signed an option agreement to acquire a Conservation Easement (“Conservation Easement Option”) on the Desert Creek Ranch in Smith Valley, as a companion to the Yerington Land Conveyance and Sustainable Development Act (YLCSDA). The lands included within the proposed conservation easement are located approximately 20 miles southwest of Pumpkin Hollow and the YLCSDA lands. Therefore, they are not part of the YLCSDA lands.
Timothy M. Dyhr, Vice President of Environment and External Relations stated that Nevada Copper decided enter into the Conservation Easement Option to secure prime Sage Grouse habitat in the Bi-state region of Nevada and California, the Desert Creek Ranch, as a companion conservation component to the YLCSDA conveyance, once passed into law. “We believe this confirms our commitment to support passing this important legislation.” Exercise of the Conservation Easement Option is subject to passage of the YLCSDA. Desert Creek Ranch has been identified as a critical component of habitat for the Bi-State population of the Sage Grouse.
The acquisition of a conservation easement, combined with the payment of fair market value for the Yerington lands to be conveyed, provides substantial compensation for the YLCSDA conveyance, in excess of the fair market value of the YLCSDA land itself. That legislation would transfer 10,400 acres of BLM-administered federal land to the City of Yerington to allow annexation of those lands to the City. Approximately 3,880 acres or 39% of those lands would be conveyed to Nevada Copper for mine development; 1,825 acres or 18% dedicated for other industrial and commercial development and 4,450 acres or 43% for recreation, open space buffer and a multi-purpose events center that could include a dedicated and expanded facility for the very successful Night in the Country Music Festival and other recreational events.
In March 2010, the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) determined that the Bi-State population of Greater Sage Grouse constitutes a valid Distinct Population Segment (DPS). This distinction allows the Bi-State DPS to be listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) independently from the range wide population. The Bi-State DPS comprises a genetically unique meta-population of greater sage-grouse that defines the far southwestern limit of the species’ range. The Bi-State DPS occurs over an approximately 170-mile long range, which is up to 60 miles wide and includes portions of eight counties in western Nevada and eastern California.
In 2011 the Executive Oversight Committee for Greater Sage Grouse Conservation, Bi-State DPS (EOC) was formed consisting of the Directors of State and Federal land management agencies in Nevada and California with regulatory authority in the Bi-State DPS area.
A Desert Creek conservation easement, once established, would help address one of the most critical environmental issues in the State of Nevada and Lyon County, the preservation of the Sage Grouse and more specifically the Bi-State population of the Sage Grouse. The easement is located in the Pine Nut Mountain and Desert Creek-Fales Bi-State Sage Grouse Planning Management Unit (“PMU”) of the Bi-State DPS, and is classified by the Nevada Department of Wildlife as Essential and Irreplaceable Sage Grouse Habitat, important for summer, winter, and nesting habitat.
Ken Mayer, Director of the Nevada Division of Wildlife stated in a letter to Nevada Copper that: “it is critical that the Desert Creek Ranch remain intact for the future conservation of the Bi-State Sage-grouse” and that he “strongly supports Nevada Copper’s proposal to acquire a conservation easement on Desert Creek Ranch.”
The Desert Creek Ranch owners, David and Jon Park state: "2013 marks the 150th anniversary of our family's ranching heritage in Western Nevada. This conservation easement ensures the continuation of land stewardship, and allows us to continue the ranching tradition that we learned from our grandfather, Brooks Park, and father Bruce Park. Desert Creek Ranch will remain agriculturally productive, and will sustain the natural resources and wide open spaces important to Sage-Grouse and other wildlife. We are pleased to be part of a collaborative effort between non-government entities to promote private enterprise and growth in Lyon County, while preserving our agricultural heritage and Sage-Grouse habitat. This conservation easement will also ensure the success of the Yerington Land Conveyance and Sustainability Act. The entire package is of tremendous benefit to our community. It is good for our local economy, it is good for our agriculture, and it is good for our resources."
Desert Creek Ranch has been assisted by Legacy Land and Water, LLC, who have been working with private landowners to secure conservation easements on private lands with high resource values. They stated: "Privately owned and managed agricultural lands are critical to Sage-Grouse, which rely heavily on irrigated wet meadows. Desert Creek Ranch is the most important property in the entire Bi-State Region of Nevada, and provides crucial habitat for the largest known lek in the Desert Creek-Fales Planning Management Unit. A conservation easement would ensure that Desert Creek Ranch will remain intact and privately managed, providing essential brood rearing, nesting, and winter habitat for the Bi-State Sage-Grouse."
The Yerington Land Conveyance clearly helps to expedite development of the Pumpkin Hollow Mine and to assure that $80 million of planned infrastructure can be integrated to support both the mine and other economic and recreational development on the lands proposed for transfer.
For additional information about Nevada Copper Inc. please visit our project website at www.pumpkinhollowcopper.com.
NEVADA COPPER INC.
Timothy M. Dyhr, Vice President, Environment and External Relations
For further information call:
Timothy M. Dyhr
Vice President of Environment and External Relations
Email: [email protected] Rita Menesini
Community Relations Coordinator
Phone 775-463-3510
Email: [email protected]
NEVADA COPPER – CONSERVATION EASEMENT
September 5, 2012 - Nevada Copper, Inc. ("Nevada Copper") is pleased to announce that the company has signed an option agreement to acquire a Conservation Easement (“Conservation Easement Option”) on the Desert Creek Ranch in Smith Valley, as a companion to the Yerington Land Conveyance and Sustainable Development Act (YLCSDA). The lands included within the proposed conservation easement are located approximately 20 miles southwest of Pumpkin Hollow and the YLCSDA lands. Therefore, they are not part of the YLCSDA lands.
Timothy M. Dyhr, Vice President of Environment and External Relations stated that Nevada Copper decided enter into the Conservation Easement Option to secure prime Sage Grouse habitat in the Bi-state region of Nevada and California, the Desert Creek Ranch, as a companion conservation component to the YLCSDA conveyance, once passed into law. “We believe this confirms our commitment to support passing this important legislation.” Exercise of the Conservation Easement Option is subject to passage of the YLCSDA. Desert Creek Ranch has been identified as a critical component of habitat for the Bi-State population of the Sage Grouse.
The acquisition of a conservation easement, combined with the payment of fair market value for the Yerington lands to be conveyed, provides substantial compensation for the YLCSDA conveyance, in excess of the fair market value of the YLCSDA land itself. That legislation would transfer 10,400 acres of BLM-administered federal land to the City of Yerington to allow annexation of those lands to the City. Approximately 3,880 acres or 39% of those lands would be conveyed to Nevada Copper for mine development; 1,825 acres or 18% dedicated for other industrial and commercial development and 4,450 acres or 43% for recreation, open space buffer and a multi-purpose events center that could include a dedicated and expanded facility for the very successful Night in the Country Music Festival and other recreational events.
In March 2010, the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) determined that the Bi-State population of Greater Sage Grouse constitutes a valid Distinct Population Segment (DPS). This distinction allows the Bi-State DPS to be listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) independently from the range wide population. The Bi-State DPS comprises a genetically unique meta-population of greater sage-grouse that defines the far southwestern limit of the species’ range. The Bi-State DPS occurs over an approximately 170-mile long range, which is up to 60 miles wide and includes portions of eight counties in western Nevada and eastern California.
In 2011 the Executive Oversight Committee for Greater Sage Grouse Conservation, Bi-State DPS (EOC) was formed consisting of the Directors of State and Federal land management agencies in Nevada and California with regulatory authority in the Bi-State DPS area.
A Desert Creek conservation easement, once established, would help address one of the most critical environmental issues in the State of Nevada and Lyon County, the preservation of the Sage Grouse and more specifically the Bi-State population of the Sage Grouse. The easement is located in the Pine Nut Mountain and Desert Creek-Fales Bi-State Sage Grouse Planning Management Unit (“PMU”) of the Bi-State DPS, and is classified by the Nevada Department of Wildlife as Essential and Irreplaceable Sage Grouse Habitat, important for summer, winter, and nesting habitat.
Ken Mayer, Director of the Nevada Division of Wildlife stated in a letter to Nevada Copper that: “it is critical that the Desert Creek Ranch remain intact for the future conservation of the Bi-State Sage-grouse” and that he “strongly supports Nevada Copper’s proposal to acquire a conservation easement on Desert Creek Ranch.”
The Desert Creek Ranch owners, David and Jon Park state: "2013 marks the 150th anniversary of our family's ranching heritage in Western Nevada. This conservation easement ensures the continuation of land stewardship, and allows us to continue the ranching tradition that we learned from our grandfather, Brooks Park, and father Bruce Park. Desert Creek Ranch will remain agriculturally productive, and will sustain the natural resources and wide open spaces important to Sage-Grouse and other wildlife. We are pleased to be part of a collaborative effort between non-government entities to promote private enterprise and growth in Lyon County, while preserving our agricultural heritage and Sage-Grouse habitat. This conservation easement will also ensure the success of the Yerington Land Conveyance and Sustainability Act. The entire package is of tremendous benefit to our community. It is good for our local economy, it is good for our agriculture, and it is good for our resources."
Desert Creek Ranch has been assisted by Legacy Land and Water, LLC, who have been working with private landowners to secure conservation easements on private lands with high resource values. They stated: "Privately owned and managed agricultural lands are critical to Sage-Grouse, which rely heavily on irrigated wet meadows. Desert Creek Ranch is the most important property in the entire Bi-State Region of Nevada, and provides crucial habitat for the largest known lek in the Desert Creek-Fales Planning Management Unit. A conservation easement would ensure that Desert Creek Ranch will remain intact and privately managed, providing essential brood rearing, nesting, and winter habitat for the Bi-State Sage-Grouse."
The Yerington Land Conveyance clearly helps to expedite development of the Pumpkin Hollow Mine and to assure that $80 million of planned infrastructure can be integrated to support both the mine and other economic and recreational development on the lands proposed for transfer.
For additional information about Nevada Copper Inc. please visit our project website at www.pumpkinhollowcopper.com.
NEVADA COPPER INC.
Timothy M. Dyhr, Vice President, Environment and External Relations
For further information call:
Timothy M. Dyhr
Vice President of Environment and External Relations
Email: [email protected] Rita Menesini
Community Relations Coordinator
Phone 775-463-3510
Email: [email protected]