California

5,723,999

Acres Protected

That’s about 4,336,363 football fields!

Land trusts have already conserved 61 million acres of private land across the nation — more than all of the national parks combined. Help us conserve another 60 million acres by the end of the decade.

Together, let’s keep Gaining Ground.

Visitors to Land Trust Properties

Visitors in 2020, more than double that of 2015.

Percent of Land Trusts That Provide Public Access to Their Lands

Land trusts provide opportunities to recreate and recharge.

Land trusts provide programs and activities to get people outside and learn about the land.

Walking, hiking and other outdoor recreation improve people's health and well-being.

Universal access trails are designed to be used by all people, regardless of ability.

71%

People from various racial and ethnic backgrounds
Older adults or those living in retirement communities
People who identify as LGBTQ+
People living with disabilities
Veterans

Youth education and development
Community and economic development
Food security and agriculture
Health and wellness
Social and environmental justice

California land trusts are community-led and supported and protect lands and waters that help the entire state.

Active Land Trusts

A land trust is a nonprofit that conserves land by acquiring and stewarding land or conservation easements.

Learn more about land trusts

Alliance Member Land Trusts

Land Trust Alliance members commit to adopting Land Trust Standards and Practices as their guiding principles.

Learn about the land trust alliance

Accredited Land Trusts

Accredited land trusts undergo a thorough review of their practices in governance, finance, transactions and stewardship.

Learn about land trust accreditation

Members/financial supporters

1,290,045
Volunteers

12,061
Full-time staff

1,097
Part-time staff

278
Board members

1,134

Oldest

124 years old (1900)
Youngest

8 years old (2016)
Median age

32 years old

View website

79%

54%

California Department of Natural Resources
State of California Wildlife Conservation Board
California Energy Commission

Acre by acre, land trusts are helping to conserve California lands, waters and ways of life.

2010

2015

2020

      Total acres protected
      
4,075,007
5,114,457
5,723,999
+40%

920,701

1,425,573

1,738,526

+89%

716,548

776,014

910,877

+27%

1,202,202

1,251,208

1,353,251

+13%

1,235,556

1,511,937

1,721,345

+39%

Disclaimer: Land trusts conserve land in many different ways and every project is unique. Category totals may change depending on how acres are reported by survey respondents to reflect the most current data and minimize double-counting. In some instances, the total may be greater than the sum of the separate categories due to organizations that provided total acres not broken down by category.

Source: 2020 National Land Trust Census

Source: Trust for Public Land's Conservation Almanac

Source: NRCS - Natural Resources Inventory

This information reflects data collected in the National Land Trust Census, the longest-running comprehensive survey of private land conservation in America. Learn more about the Census and see which land trusts participated in the 2020 National Land Trust Census.

Land trusts across the state are helping find solutions to some of California's most pressing issues.

Tackling climate change: The accredited Marin Agricultural Land Trust helped launch the Marin Carbon Project to see whether improved agricultural management practices, such as managed grazing and spreading compost on rangeland, could help soil take up more atmospheric CO2.
Read more
Engaging with community partners: At the heart of one of California’s most scenic stretches of coastline in Big Sur, the Esselen Tribe of Monterey County has regained its first ancestral homelands since it was displaced by the Spanish four centuries ago. In 2020 the Esselen Tribe and the accredited Western Rivers Conservancy finalized a project placing the Adler Ranch south of Monterey into Esselen ownership.
Read more
Addressing community needs: In urban Pittsburg, California, located outside San Francisco in the East Bay, youth who have been through foster care are learning work and life skills through a new farm program of the accredited John Muir Land Trust.
Read more

Land Trust Alliance member land trusts, listed below, commit to adopting Land Trust Standards and Practices as their guiding principles.

1,344 acres protected in CA

46,840 acres protected in CA

3,107 acres protected in CA

8,148 acres protected in CA

29,385 acres protected in CA

2,240 acres protected in CA

370 acres protected in CA

50,000 acres protected in CA

230 acres protected in CA

125 acres protected in CA

10,700 acres protected in CA

26,433 acres protected in CA

40,000 acres protected in CA

729 acres protected in CA

17,606 acres protected in CA

380,181 acres protected in CA

1,565 acres protected in CA

100,484 acres protected in CA

458 acres protected in CA

114 acres protected in CA

15,962 acres protected in CA

18,772 acres protected in CA

4,181 acres protected in CA

3,215 acres protected in CA

3,743 acres protected in CA

62,031 acres protected in CA

438 acres protected in CA

112 acres protected in CA

35,298 acres protected in CA

190 acres protected in CA

3,634 acres protected in CA

4,818 acres protected in CA

7 acres protected in CA

18,066 acres protected in CA

941 acres protected in CA

86,003 acres protected in CA

1,541 acres protected in CA

5,905 acres protected in CA

2,982 acres protected in CA

87 acres protected in CA

57,492 acres protected in CA

36 acres protected in CA

211 acres protected in CA

18,620 acres protected in CA

121,862 acres protected in CA

9,700 acres protected in CA

1,517 acres protected in CA

208 acres protected in CA

360 acres protected in CA

56,629 acres protected in CA

36,460 acres protected in CA

2,310 acres protected in CA

5,000 acres protected in CA

740 acres protected in CA

241,161 acres protected in CA

372 acres protected in CA

1,382 acres protected in CA

82,497 acres protected in CA

11,956 acres protected in CA

87 acres protected in CA

127 acres protected in CA

13,693 acres protected in CA

30,643 acres protected in CA

12,146 acres protected in CA

7,288 acres protected in CA

2,309 acres protected in CA

1,300 acres protected in CA

4,388 acres protected in CA

San Joaquin River Parkway and Conservation Trust

6,302 acres protected in CA

15,493 acres protected in CA

18,090 acres protected in CA

51,104 acres protected in CA

245,239 acres protected in CA

35,148 acres protected in CA

42,971 acres protected in CA

24,489 acres protected in CA

34,392 acres protected in CA

7,564 acres protected in CA

Small Wilderness Area Preservation, Inc.

30 acres protected in CA

25,052 acres protected in CA

54,322 acres protected in CA

617 acres protected in CA

405 acres protected in CA

557,260 acres protected in CA

4,833 acres protected in CA

The Land Conservancy of San Luis Obispo County

30,006 acres protected in CA

27,461 acres protected in CA

1,463,831 acres protected in CA

The Trust for Public Land, National Office

383,266 acres protected in CA

36,893 acres protected in CA

8,111 acres protected in CA

4,339 acres protected in CA

5,098 acres protected in CA

37,232 acres protected in CA

Tule Basin Land and Water Conservation Trust

475 acres protected in CA

3,905 acres protected in CA

156 acres protected in CA

71,753 acres protected in CA

9 acres protected in CA

92,855 acres protected in CA

12,910 acres protected in CA

Gaining Ground

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