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Cascade Land Conservancy Joins Pearl Jam Carbon Portfolio Strategy

The Cascade Land Conservancy today announced that it has been chosen as one of nine organizations that will benefit from Pearl Jam’s Vitalogy Foundation Carbon Portfolio Strategy.  These nine organizations are united in their relentless work in the fields of clean renewable energy and carbon emissions reduction. By identifying and supporting leaders in the environmental community, the band hopes to raise people’s carbon consciousness while also investing in a clean energy future.

The Conservancy’s work makes the organization a natural fit for Pearl Jam’s Carbon Portfolio Strategy, particularly since the Pacific Northwest is the band’s home. The largest land trust in the region, the Cascade Land Conservancy is headquartered in Seattle, with main offices in five counties and operations or holdings in five additional counties in Western Washington.  Through programs such as The Cascade Agenda and The Green Seattle Partnership, the Conservancy is conserving, restoring, and stewarding thousands of acres of forests, farms, wetlands, city green spaces, and other threatened lands every year.  Funds from the Carbon Portfolio Strategy will be used to advance Cascade Land Conservancy’s efforts to conserve and care for the landscapes that define the Pacific Northwest — from headwaters to estuaries, foothill forests to communities and neighborhoods.  

“The Cascade Land Conservancy is honored to be one of the nine organizations selected for doing innovative work on climate change and renewable clean energy,” said Gene Duvernoy, CLC President.  “The Conservancy has worked in recent years to conserve nearly 100,000 acres of working forests in the Seattle area, a huge benefit to the clean air and quality of life we all enjoy in this region.”

The Cascade Land Conservancy protects working forests not only for their conservation value, but also for the value that trees provide in carbon sequestration. Trees absorb carbon dioxide during photosynthesis and emit oxygen, thereby improving air quality. Just one acre of mature trees sequesters 16 tons of carbon each year.  In recent years, the Conservancy has put this knowledge to work by helping businesses and individuals develop and execute  plans for offsetting carbon emissions through tree plantings and restoration efforts. It’s that kind of innovative, entrepreneurial thinking that makes the Cascade Land Conservancy stand out when it comes to conservation and the environment. 

“We believe in businesses that proactively take the lead on the issues of environment and clean energy, rather than waiting for our government to identify solutions for us,” said Pearl Jam’s Stone Gossard.  “By identifying and supporting a diverse group of organizations and strategies, we hope to create new models for businesses like ours who are looking to invest in the future health of our planet and its delicate ecosphere. We selected the Cascade Land Conservancy for our Portfolio with an eye towards supporting local, regional, national and international strategies that positively affect climate and environment and we hope, over the long run, to add more groups to it.”

Cascade Land Conservancy (www.cascadeland.org) is one of nine organizations chosen for Pearl Jam’s 2006 Carbon Portfolio Strategy.  By investing in these organizations, Pearl Jam is actively working to raise the world’s carbon consciousness by supporting organizations at the forefront of environmental awareness and clean energy. In addition to Cascade Land Conservancy, the other Carbon Portfolio Strategy organizations are American Solar Energy Society, Bonneville Environmental Foundation, Conservation International, EarthCorps, Green Empowerment, Honor the Earth, IslandWood, and the Washington Clean Energy Initiative. Find out more about the organizations supported by the Carbon Portfolio Strategy at www.pearljam.com/activism.

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