The endangered dwarf bear poppy will continue to bloom into the future thanks to the purchase of land in St. George that will be added to a sanctuary created to help preserve the plant that grows only in Washington County.
Nature Conservancy spokeswoman Larisa Barry said her nonprofit group paid $444,000 for 135 acres of land that will be included in the White Dome Nature Preserve, which is located in a dry area along St. George's southern boundary near Arizona.
The parcel, purchased from the State and Institutional Trust Lands Administration, will be added to a 55½-acre piece of land bought in 2007 to start the preserve.
The conservancy is working with SITLA to acquire a third parcel, which will add an additional 150 acres to the preserve.
Officials hope to eventually expand the site to 800 acres and plan public hiking trails and educational signs.
The preserve will also help other high-risk plants and animals in the area, including the zebra-tailed lizard, loggerhead shrike and threatened Siler pincushion cactus, which also only grows in Washington County.
"Today's land purchase marks an important milestone for conservation in Washington County," said Elaine York, the conservancy's West Desert Regional Director.
Barry said that since 2005, the Nature Conservancy has worked with U.S. Fish and Wildlife and Bureau of Land Management on the project along with SITLA and the Utah Department of Transportation, which helped buy some land it will manage as part of the preserve.
Money from the purchase of the trust lands will go into Utah's Permanent School Fund, a perpetual endowment that annually distributes income to the state's public schools.
