[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 12]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 17194]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



   RECOGNIZING THE 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE LAND TRUST OF NAPA COUNTY

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                           HON. MIKE THOMPSON

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, September 14, 2001

  Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize 
the tremendous contributions of the Land Trust of Napa County over the 
past 25 years. The Land Trust has experienced great success since two 
of its founders, F.S. (Si) and June Foote, realized their hopes of 
preserving the environmental identity of the Napa Valley.
  In 1976, Harry Tranmer, Vic Fershko, John Whitridge joined the Footes 
as founding board members just as other land trust organizations were 
beginning to have success across the nation. From its humble roots in 
the Footes' living room, the Land Trust of Napa County has now become a 
model for land trusts around the country.
  The Land Trust achieved great success because of the hard work of its 
members and the dedication of people in Napa County to protect and 
enrich the environment in which they live. The first piece of land 
donated to the Land Trust was a 640-acre parcel on Mt. George in 
eastern Napa. Since then, the Land Trust has succeeded in securing over 
25,000 acres of land for future generations of residents in the Napa 
Valley.
  At a time when commercial and residential development of land is 
destroying the natural characteristics of agricultural lands and open 
space, the Land Trust has been instrumental in preserving the Napa 
Valley's unique beauty and heritage. In addition to purchasing land, 
the Land Trust works to monitor and enforce programs for conservation 
easements. Its monitoring program, for which it has recently hired an 
Easement Monitoring Coordinator, is used by organizations in the Bay 
Area, across California, nationwide to develop a standard monitoring 
and enforcement process.
  Mr. Speaker, on the occasion of the Land Trust of Napa County's 25th 
Anniversary, I would like to recognize its outstanding contributions to 
our generation and future generations in the Napa Valley.

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