In September, Western Rivers Conservancy conveyed the 466-acre Dillon Beach Ranch to the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria for permanent conservation and stewardship. With this historic land-back conservation deal, the Tribe (comprised of Coast Miwok and Southern Pomo Indians) regains ownership and stewardship of lands within their aboriginal territory, spanning across Sonoma and Marin Counties. The property includes 1.5 miles of the Estero de San Antonio, home to critical habitat for a vast array of plants and wildlife, including the federally listed northern tidewater goby. 

Western Rivers Conservancy’s (WRC) Conservation Director, Josh Kling, joins host and producer Hannah Wilton on this week’s Terra Verde episode to discuss this historic land-back ownership transfer and other riverland conservation initiatives in the West. Among them, Blue Creek Salmon Sanctuary and Yurok Tribal Community Forest in collaboration with the Yurok Tribe, and an ongoing partnership with the Esselen Tribe in Big Sur to protect and repatriate a mile of the Little Sur River.

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