Mark Twain National Forest (MO) Purchases Cedar Creek Property

Columbia, MO: U.S. Senator Kit Bond announced today that the Trust for Public Land (TPL), working with United States Forest Service (USFS) and a private landowner, has secured and transferred 440 acres of land to the Mark Twain National Forest.

“Today, we celebrate resource protection, improvement of the Mark Twain National Forest, the enhanced ability of our public to enjoy it, and the lesson of what can be accomplished when people in the public and private sectors put their energies together and work constructively toward a common purpose,” Bond said. “It’s truly win-win when we can provide people easy recreational access to wildlife while protecting forests at the same time.”

The tract of land includes twenty-three ponds, meadows, mixed woodlands and is suitable for hiking, camping, mountain biking, hunting, photography, and other outdoor pursuits. With nearly 100,000 people living within 15 minutes travel of the property, it will provide a key addition to the recreational resources of the region. “The Trust for Public Land is grateful to the landowner and Senator Bond for their commitment to the conservation of this outstanding property,” said TPL director Al Raymond. “In partnership with the Mark Twain National Forest, we are pleased to have had the opportunity to help protect Missouri’s wonderful recreational resources.”

Funding for the purchase was requested by the Forest Service and approved by Congress. As a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Bond has played an instrumental role in securing nearly $4 million in federal funds to purchase additional land for the Mark Twain National Forest over the past five years.

With this acquisition, four tracts of already protected National Forest land will be consolidated into one 1,600 acre block of hardwood forest, native grasses, clear streams, and quiet ponds. The addition of this property to the Mark Twain National Forest will allow the agency to relocate 1.5 miles of the Cedar Creek trail system to be relocated off county roads and onto the property.

“My special thanks to the Trust for their commitment and well?earned reputation. They have worked to protect over 1 million acres of land across the nation and done so with the patience to preserve not just our natural resources but the personal harmony within our communities,” Bond concluded. “The commitment of the Trust and the USFS to work with landowners and communities to earn their cooperation and respect will ensure that this opportunity will not be the last.”