Tolif Hunt, Whiterock Conservancy Executive Director; tel. 712-684-2697, tolif@iowatelecom.net, http://www.whiterockconservancy.org; Rachel Garst, Whiterock Outreach Coordinator and Coon Rapids Great Places Chair, rgarst@netins.net, h/o 712- 651-2015; Liz Garst, Garst Farm Resorts, tel. 712-684-5240, lizgarst@gliddenwildblue.com; Fred Kirschenmann, Whiterock Board Chair, Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture, ISU, leopold1@iastate.edu, 515-294-5588; Mark Ackelson, Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation, www.inhf.org, 800- 475-1846 or 515- 288-1846.

(September 19, 2006, Coon Rapids, Iowa) Whiterock Conservancy announces the hire of Tolif Hunt as its first paid Executive Director. "After a nation-wide search, we are very pleased to have found the perfect person for this job," says Fred Kirschenmann, Whiterock Board Chair. "Tolif may look young, but his appearance belies the great depth of his skills and experience."

Whiterock is a new nature preserve and research center in West-Central, Iowa, formed in December 2004 to manage a huge conservation land gift from the Garst Family of agribusiness fame.

Whiterock Conservancy’s central tract of rolling pastures, timbered bluffs, and rare prairie remnants stretches from the town of Coon Rapids eight miles along both banks of the Middle Raccoon River.

The lands were originally used by farmer Steve Garst for cattle pasture, hunting and fishing. Under the direction of Hunt and the nonprofit Whiterock board, they will now be restored to native prairie and oak savannah, used for environmental and agricultural research, and opened to the public for low-impact recreation and education.

Hunt comes to Iowa from the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy (WPC), where he worked for the last five years as a watershed project manager and more recently as Director of Agricultural Conservation.

During his tenure in Pennsylvania, Hunt oversaw the development and implementation of numerous conservation grant projects and initiatives. Among other successes, he was instrumental in crafting western Pennsylvania’s Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP), a $145 million private-public partnership.

Hunt also has experience working with community and political leaders. In 2005, he landed a $500,000 federal highway bill earmark to help improve the conservation design of roads along streams in south central Pennsylvania. For the last two years Hunt coordinated a $1 million project to provide technical assistance to western Pennsylvania farmers and agricultural agencies interested in implementing conservation practices such as CREP, stream-side fencing, nutrient management planning, and no-till production.

Hunt will now lead the planning, partnership, and fundraising efforts that will be needed to realize Whiterock Conservancy’s complex aspirations.

"Whiterock is an exciting project," says Hunt. "It’s just starting and has a lot of opportunity. It’s unique because Whiterock’s mission is to take all the great aspects of environmental conservation and mix it with community conservation, agricultural production, timber management, applied research, and recreational use. You just can’t find that level of diversity and innovation with other organizations."

During her time as initial volunteer director, Liz Garst worked hard to survey the land her family is gifting. "A fair amount is already known about the area’s unique geology, astronomers have discovered its exceptional darkness, pond expert Jim Blankman has helped to get the fishing ponds up to speed, botanist Tom Rosburg inventoried dozens of plant communities, and DNR has conducted an initial watershed assessment." reports Garst.

"Thanks to Kay Neumann of Saving our Avian Resources (SOAR) and Dr. Bill Clark of ISU, there are also initial bird lists and a start on a wild-bird monitoring protocol. The Leopold Center recently awarded Whiterock a grant to continue wild-life monitoring on recently reconfigured pasture areas. A full research program, however, has yet to be developed."

Nor is Whiterock –which lacks signage, restrooms, and parking --really yet open to the public. The great potential of the area was nevertheless recognized in October 2005, when Governor Vilsack designated the Coon Rapids-Whiterock area -out of a field of 146 aspirants- as one of the first three Iowa Great Places.

This designation led Coon Rapids to receive a $1 million Great Place appropriation from the Iowa Legislature. Disbursement details are still being worked out with the Department of Cultural Affairs, but the local Great Places group is requesting that a quarter of this amount be allocated to help fund Whiterock access infrastructure, including a visitor center on Highway 141, signage, and improvements to the Whiterock astronomy field.

An additional $250,000 (plus a half a million dollar federal earmark) will go towards a 4-mile paved trail linking Whiterock to downtown Coon Rapids.

Once fully opened, Whiterock is expected to attract some 50,000 people a year, thus giving an economic boost to this struggling corner of rural Iowa. USDA Rural Development recently announced a grant to support the economic impact analysis of these projected rural tourism investments.

To date, Mary Garst and her five daughters have already transferred ownership of 1,887 acres of a land gift that will eventually exceed 5,000 acres. The Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation (INHF) is temporarily holding these donations until such time as the IRS finishes processing Whiterock’s application to be accepted as a non-profit charitable organization.

As soon as that happens, Liz Garst will also be donating her small ecotourism business, Garst Farm Resorts, which includes the historic Garst Farm House visited by Nikita Khrushchev in 1959. A film documenting this historic visit is also in the planning stages. Hunt will also be overseeing these cultural preservation efforts.

"There is an important story here about changing Iowa agriculture," says Hunt. "Whiterock will be an important illustration of Iowa’s past as it seeks new alternatives for economic and environmental sustainability. Central to Whiterock Conservancy’s mission is the exploration of innovative options that support a vital and sustainable rural future."

The INHF has also established an account to receive contributions for Whiterock. Gifts may be sent to the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation (with a note that they are restricted to Whiterock Conservancy) at 505 Fifth Avenue, Suite 444, Des Moines, IA 50309.

© 2005, Whiterock Conservancy