Conservancy Granted Major ACE Basin Conservation Easement

CHARLESTON, SC (July 5, 2007) – The Nature Conservancy has been granted a conservation easement on the 1,800-acre Old Combahee Plantation within the northern Beaufort County region of the nationally-acclaimed Ashepoo-Combahee-Edisto (ACE) Basin. The easement was granted by Loring Enterprises, LLLP and the Loring Trust of Napa, California.

“The property enjoys an extraordinary history of conservation stewardship and management. The Conservancy deeply appreciates the efforts of Ms. Jessica Loring and her husband, Mr. Laurence Rasmussen, of Loring Enterprises for working with us to protect this strategic property in the ACE Basin,” said Matt Nespeca, The Nature Conservancy’s Field Representative for the Savannah River and ACE Basins.

“Old Combahee is replete with history. In the first half of the 1700s, Walter Izard, Esq. assembled the English Royal Land Grants that now comprise Old Combahee. The property exists today under the same geographical configuration as it has since 1754,” said Ms. Loring. “After passing through a series of timber company ownerships, the property was acquired by my grandfather, C. Leigh Stevens, in 1938. Five generations of the Stevens, Loring, Mayne, and Rasmussen family have enjoyed Old Combahee Plantation for its pristine and rural beauty. The family hopes that many more generations will continue to find tranquility here.” She adds, “My mother, Jessica Stevens Loring, who resided near our home in Napa from 2004 to 2006, would be delighted to know that the historical and ecological integrity of Old Combahee is now preserved.”

The conservation easement ensures that the natural integrity of the property is retained by limiting future uses to conservation-based forest management and outdoor recreation, including hunting, wildlife observation, hiking and kayaking. Bordering over four miles along the Combahee River, the easement will conserve important forested wetlands, providing critical habitat for numerous species of migratory birds including prothonotary warblers, yellow-throated warblers, swallow-tail kites, wood storks American woodcock and wood ducks.

“In addition to the conservation values of the property itself, the Old Combahee conservation easement protects the water quality of the ACE Basin National Estuarine Research Reserve located immediately downstream,” continued Matt Nespeca. “The easement also buffers and augments critical habitat on the nearby 4,661-acre Combahee Unit of the ACE Basin National Wildlife Refuge, as well as 5,000 acres of private lands also protected by conservation easements. This easement represents material testimony to the Stevens and Loring family’s long-term support and commitment to the work of The Nature Conservancy. Protection of Old Combahee Plantation provides a substantial contribution to the ACE Basin Project. We are grateful to Ms. Loring and her entire family for this magnificent gift benefiting conservation in the South Carolina Lowcountry,” concluded Nespeca.

Mrs. Jessica Stevens Loring
Photo provided by family

The Nature Conservancy is a leading conservation organization working around the world to protect ecologically important lands and waters for nature and people. To date, the Conservancy and its more than one million members have been responsible for the protection of more than 15 million acres in the United States and have helped preserve more than 102 million acres in Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific. Visit The Nature Conservancy on the Web at www.nature.org.