• Lies between the White Mountains to the east and the Fish Slough Area of Critical Environmental Concern and the Benton Range to the west.
• Approximately 14,000 acres of private land, population: 708
• Balance of land is publicly owned and administered by the Bureau of Land Management and the DWP.
• Ranching and farming community. About 12 working farms. Historically ranches in this area have been planted for alfalfa with some carrots, potatoes and garlic.
• Agricultural zoning. Farms and ranches range from approximately 160 acres to over 2,000 acres.

• The entire Tri-Valley/Highway 6 corridor is experiencing increasing pressure from Bishop and Mammoth Lakes for residential development. (For example, 80 acres in Benton and 76 acres in Hammil Valley are in the process of being subdivided)
• Typical price per acre is in excess of 4,000 per acre, and land prices have increased greatly this past year. For example, the nearby White Mountain Ranch sold in July of 2004 for $1,215,000 at $3,197 per acre and resold July 2005 for $2,750,000 or $7,236 per acre. Watterson Meadow sold in 11/04 for $1,100,000 and is now again for sale with an asking price of $2,600,000.
• Between 1992 and 2002 Mono County lost 47% of its land in farms, and Inyo county lost 8% of its land in farms. --USDA Agricultural Census figures from 1992 and 2002.

• Local, state and Federal government policies are supporting continual agricultural activity and economic viability. The AG-Agriculture land use designation of the Mono County General Plan is intended to preserve and encourage agricultural uses, to protect agricultural uses from encroachment from urban uses, and to provide for the orderly growth of activities related to agriculture. The minimum parcel size is 2.5 acres.
• According to the Inyo/Mono Counties Agriculture Department 2003 Annual Crop and Livestock Report, the combined Counties’ agricultural production for 2003 totaled $40,620,625 which represents an 11 percent increase from 2002. New 2004 data shows a slight increase of .6% in combined agricultural values. ($40,649,968)
• Agriculture is the second-highest income producer in Inyo and Mono counties. (#1 is tourism, #3 is govt)

Farmers Sell Development Rights To:
According to a 1999 survey from the American Farmland Trust, farmers gave the following reasons for selling development rights on their properties:

• To conserve their land,
• keep the land in farming,
• help them transfer the land to heirs and
• make it easier to stay in business.

What the ESLT is doing in the Tri Valley Area?
Our goal is to help preserve the agricultural viability of farms in the Tri Valley area that have most or all of the following characteristics:

• Agricultural land quality such as prime soils and reliable water resources.
• Environmental, cultural or scenic qualities.
• Potential funding existing to protect resources and special qualities.
• Potential willingness of landowner to protect resources and special qualities.