State Land Board approves 40-year forest carbon lease with Land Life for about 1,000 acres of burned trust land

The Colorado Board of Land Commissioners on Feb. 12 approved a 40-year ecosystem services lease with Land Life Company USA to reforest parts of five state trust properties damaged by wildfire, the board’s conservation services manager said.

The lease covers roughly 1,000 acres spread across five properties — Silver Mountain (Huerfano County), Mill Creek (Grand County), and three Larimer County sections (Bluestone, Eagle Canyon and Youngs Gulch). The board approved staff’s recommendation to delegate final lease language and implementation actions to staff, with the motion passing 4-0 (Chavez, Scanlon, Heath, Chair Froeb voting yes).

Board members were told the project will be implemented in three phases: pre-planting (site identification, stakeholder meetings, planting designs), planting (expected to occur in a single one- to two-month window this fall) and long-term post-planting monitoring and verification. Land Life will lead registration and verification through an established voluntary carbon registry; staff said the project will use the VERRA registry.

Why it matters: The project is the State Land Board’s first in the voluntary forest carbon market and is intended to generate revenue for trust beneficiaries while restoring forest cover on wildfire‑damaged trust lands. Staff estimated the negotiated payment to the trust beneficiaries at about $87,000 (paid in two installments), and said private partners will invest roughly $1 million in project implementation.

Key details: The board packet and staff presentation described these contract and operational terms: a roughly 40‑year lease term that begins when planting is completed; Land Life-led planting and registration; monitoring and verification cycles about every five years; Land Life maintenance responsibility ending after roughly three years; carbon rights reverting to the State Land Board in year 41; and the board’s option to continue the project on the registry beyond the initial 40-year lease. Staff presented a plan to limit grazing on planted sites for up to 10 years to protect seedlings.

Stakeholder outreach and safeguards: Staff said it had notified and consulted grazing lessees, Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW), Colorado State Forest Service, U.S. Forest Service and other federal and local partners. CPW asked staff and Land Life to time activities to minimize impacts to wildlife and fall hunting; Land Life agreed to incorporate those timing recommendations. Grazing lessees on three parcels agreed to waive the standard 12-month notice so the project can proceed for the 2025 grazing season; staff said final animal-unit-month adjustments will be made once site boundaries and planting plans are finalized.

Financial and operational clarifications: Staff described the $87,000 payment as the negotiated lease revenue to the trust beneficiaries; it will be paid in two installments, with a portion due on lease signing and the remainder tied to final planting acreage. Staff estimated about 1,000 reforested acres but said the final acreage will be determined after spring site visits and GPS‑defined planting boundaries. Staff told commissioners that the expectation is the reforested land would remain forested for 100 years but that no lease obligations continue after year 40 unless the board elects to renew participation in the registry.

Board action and vote: Commissioner Heath moved approval of the ecosystem services lease ES 01/17157 (Land Life Company USA PPC) as detailed in the board packet with delegation to staff; Commissioner Scanlon seconded. Commissioners Chavez, Scanlon, Heath and Chair Froeb voted yes. The motion carried 4-0.

What’s next: Staff will conduct spring site visits with Land Life, lessees, the State Forest Service and CPW to finalize planting plans and GPS boundaries, then proceed with fall planting and subsequent project registration and verification under the voluntary registry.