Conserved for
Rancho Purisima, LLC acquired the 2,800-acre La Purisima Ranch in early 2012 to pursue a conservation effort to protect the threatened and endangered California tiger salamander and Western spadefoot toad on the property. In 2014, the owner and Conservation Land Group then began working closely with the Land Trust, the local community, and federal and state wildlife agencies to create the Conservation Bank and obtain certification. The Conservation Bank, along with the conservation easement being held by the Land Trust, provide permanent protection to 853 acres of critically important grasslands, oak woodlands, and important ponds and aquatic habitat in the Purisima Hills near Lompoc.
La Purisima Conservation Bank is the first of its kind in Santa Barbara County, providing local developers, county, state and federal agencies, utilities and energy producers with a mechanism to mitigate their impacts to endangered species habitat, as required by law. The Conservation Bank is now selling mitigation credits to parties that impact habitat for CTS and Western spadefoot toad.
