Share
    Gaining Ground

    New Mexico

    2,490,204

    Acres Protected

    That’s about 1,886,518 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.

    Demographics

    Every land trust is as unique as the community it serves.

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

    Active Land Trusts

    5

    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

    5

    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

    4

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

    Learn about land trust accreditation

    People

    • 1,524

    • 226

    • 16

    • 3

    • 46

    Land Trust Longevity

    • 36 years old (1988)

    • 20 years old (2004)

    • 27 years old

    Percent of Land Trusts Who Increased Focus on Climate Change in the Last Five Years

    67%

    Percent of Land Trusts Receiving Funding to Address Climate Change

    33%

    Sources of Funding to Address Climate Change

    • United States Department of Agriculture - Natural Resources Conservation Service

    • North American Wetlands Conservation Act

    Land Protected

    There has been a 3% increase in New Mexico land protected by land trusts since 2010.

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

    2010
    2015
    2020
    Total acres protected
    2,427,446
    2,328,025
    2,490,204
    +3%
    Under easement
    562,838
    744,932
    906,346
    +61%
    Owned
    369,573
    366,702
    367,019
    0%
    Acquired and reconveyed
    721,540
    657,479
    490,007
    0%
    Protected by other means
    773,496
    798,948
    726,832
    0%

    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.

    Percent of Land Owned and Under Easement Held by an Accredited Land Trust

    55%

    Source: 2020 National Land Trust Census

    Total Public Funding for Conservation From 1998-2017

    $354 million

    Source: Trust for Public Land's Conservation Almanac

    Acres of Land Lost to Development From 2012-2017

    45,500

    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.

    Making a Difference

    New Mexico land trusts are gaining ground.

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

    • Providing local food: In the summer of 2020, the accredited Taos Land Trust, in collaboration with community partners, built and distributed 80+ planting-ready 4×8 garden boxes — complete with soil, irrigation equipment, hoop house coverings, and seed — to families in their community. In 2021, they distributed 60 more of these boxes around the Taos area.

      Read more

    • Saving family ranches: The accredited New Mexico Land Trust worked with the Nielson family to protect the Bluewater Heritage Ranch, which has been in the family for at least four generations. Bluewater Heritage Ranch remains whole and the land now under easement enables the Nielsons to continue ranching and preserve a healthy piece of New Mexico’s wide-open space, wildlife habitat and cultural heritage.

      Read more

    • Providing access to land for all: In July 2021, The Trust for Public Land and the Bureau of Land Management announced the expansion of the remote Sabinoso Wilderness Area in northeast New Mexico. This expanded existing wilderness area, and added a future second public access point and creating greater opportunities for outdoor recreation.

      Read more

    Land Trusts Working in New Mexico

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

    Access Fund
    Access Fund
    Boulder, CO
    American Farmland Trust
    American Farmland Trust
    Northampton, MA
    257 acres protected in NM
    Archaeology Southwest
    Archaeology Southwest
    Tucson, AZ
    272 acres protected in NM
    Colorado Cattlemen's Agricultural Land Trust
    Colorado Cattlemen's Agricultural Land Trust
    Denver, CO
    725 acres protected in NM
    Forest Trust
    Forest Trust
    Santa Fe, NM
    9,476 acres protected in NM
    Frontera Land Alliance
    Frontera Land Alliance
    El Paso, TX
    La Plata Open Space Conservancy
    La Plata Open Space Conservancy
    Durango, CO
    41 acres protected in NM
    Malpai Borderlands Group
    Malpai Borderlands Group
    Douglas, AZ
    44,000 acres protected in NM
    National Park Trust
    National Park Trust
    Rockville, MD
    215 acres protected in NM
    New Mexico Land Conservancy
    New Mexico Land Conservancy
    Santa Fe, NM
    322,353 acres protected in NM
    Ogallala Land & Water Conservancy
    Ogallala Land & Water Conservancy
    Clovis, NM
    Rio Grande Agricultural Land Trust
    Rio Grande Agricultural Land Trust
    Albuquerque, NM
    6,269 acres protected in NM
    Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation
    Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation
    Missoula, MT
    105,067 acres protected in NM
    Santa Fe Conservation Trust
    Santa Fe Conservation Trust
    Santa Fe, NM
    45,615 acres protected in NM
    Southern Plains Land Trust
    Southern Plains Land Trust
    Lamar, CO
    Taos Land Trust
    Taos Land Trust
    Taos, NM
    25,792 acres protected in NM
    The Conservation Fund
    The Conservation Fund
    Arlington, VA
    108,608 acres protected in NM
    The Humane Society Wildlife Land Trust
    The Humane Society Wildlife Land Trust
    Washington, DC
    1,292 acres protected in NM
    The Nature Conservancy
    The Nature Conservancy
    Arlington, VA
    1,035,419 acres protected in NM
    The Trust for Public Land, National Office
    The Trust for Public Land, National Office
    San Francisco, CA
    140,559 acres protected in NM
    The Wilderness Land Trust
    The Wilderness Land Trust
    Helena, MT
    4,992 acres protected in NM
    Western Rivers Conservancy
    Western Rivers Conservancy
    Portland, OR