Sutter Buttes Regional Land Trust

What Sutter Buttes Regional Land Trust does

Sutter Buttes Regional Land Trust (SBRLT) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charitable organization headquartered in Yuba City, California, that permanently protects natural and agricultural lands in the Northern Sacramento Valley. Founded in 1989 (with predecessor entities dating to 1976) under federal tax ID 68-0204641, SBRLT operates across Yuba, Sutter, and Colusa counties and has cumulatively protected more than 4,700 acres across nine documented conservation easement properties, including the 952.34-acre Magnolia Ranch, the 876-acre Danna Farms, the 618-acre Bear River Preserve, and the 200-acre North Butte. The organization achieved national accreditation from the Land Trust Accreditation Commission in August 2015 and has maintained that status through subsequent renewals.

SBRLT's core product is the conservation easement — a voluntary, perpetual legal agreement that restricts development on private land while the landowner retains ownership — supplemented by fee title acquisition, stewardship monitoring, and mitigation services. Supporting offerings include an individual membership program with six tiers ($30 to $1,000 annually), a seven-tier business sponsorship program ($100 to $5,000), an annual photo contest and exclusive member calendar that raises over $6,000 per year, planned giving vehicles, and a volunteer program. SBRLT does not operate a technology platform; its competitive advantage rests on Land Trust Alliance accreditation, Terrafirma legal defense membership, three decades of regional relationships, and a sister-organization relationship with Middle Mountain Interpretive Hikes for guided public access.

SBRLT's revenue is generated through a hybrid of individual memberships, corporate sponsorships, individual donations and planned gifts, event revenue, and — most significantly for mission delivery — restricted grants from California Strategic Growth Council SALC, USDA NRCS Agricultural Conservation Easement Program, and the Department of Defense REPI Program. The organization is governed by a seven-member Board of Directors led by Board President Carolyn Brown, with Alyssa Lindman serving as Executive Director; total disclosed staff is 1-10 employees plus a currently open part-time Administrative Assistant & Outreach Coordinator role.

Name

Sutter Buttes Regional Land Trust

Legal name

Sutter Buttes Regional Land Trust

Website

https://sutterbutteslandtrust.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1989

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Sutter Buttes Regional Land Trust is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit land trust headquartered in Yuba City, California, that permanently protects natural and agricultural lands through conservation easements across Yuba, Sutter, and Colusa counties. It serves private landowners, corporate sponsors, and individual members, and has protected over 4,700 acres since 1989.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Land Conservation Services

NAICS

Nature Parks and Other Similar Institutions (712190)

SIC

Real Estate (6500)

akta.pro primary industry

Land Trusts & Protected Areas (BPAGAGAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Conservation Easements & Land Trust Services (AFAMAMAH)

Keywords

• Land conservation services
• Conservation easements
• Habitat preservation
• Agricultural land protection
• Nonprofit land trust

Headquarters

HQ city

Yuba City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: Annual membership contributions at multiple tiers ranging from $30 (Donor) to $1,000 (Patron). Includes benefits such as hike certificates, event discounts, and exclusive calendar access.
2. Business Sponsorships: Corporate sponsorship program with multiple tiers from $100 (Digital Donor) to $5,000 (Pacific Flyway Defender). Includes event access, logo recognition, calendar sponsorship, and promotional benefits.
3. Donations: General cash donations and planned giving vehicles including bequests, charitable gift annuities, life insurance, real estate, and retirement asset donations.
4. Calendar Sales: Annual calendar formerly sold retail; now exclusive membership benefit. Photo contest winners featured; calendar serves as major fundraiser raising over $6,000 annually.
5. Event Revenue: Revenue from Swan Festival, kick-off parties, photo contest, and other community events including ticket sales and auction items.
6. Merchandise: Sale of branded merchandise including bonfire campaign shirts supporting the digital rebuild 'Megaphone' fundraising campaign.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Sutter Buttes Regional Land Trust is a nonprofit land trust that permanently protects natural and agricultural lands in the Northern Sacramento Valley through voluntary conservation easements and fee title acquisition. It supports these land protection efforts with a tiered individual membership program, business sponsorship packages, planned giving, an annual photo contest and calendar fundraiser, volunteer programs, and public access through a partnership with Middle Mountain Interpretive Hikes.

Product overview

Sutter Buttes Regional Land Trust operates as a unified conservation organization offering land protection programs and community engagement services. The core offering is the Land Conservation Program, which provides conservation easements and fee title acquisition to preserve natural and agricultural resources. Supporting services include membership programs with tiered benefits, annual calendar sales, photo contests, business sponsorships, planned giving options, volunteer opportunities, and touring/hiking experiences facilitated through a sister organization partnership. The organization does not offer a technology platform or SaaS product.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Land Conservation Program Conservation program that works with landowners to preserve natural landscape and protect wildlife habitat, water quality, and historic resources through conservation easements and fee title acquisition across Yuba, Sutter, and Colusa counties.
• Conservation Easements Voluntary legal agreements that permanently limit property development to protect conservation values including natural habitats, scenic vistas, agricultural lands, and cultural sites, negotiated with private landowners in the Northern Sacramento Valley.
• Membership Program Individual membership tiers (Donor $30, Friend $55, Associate $105, Sponsor $250, Conservator $500, Patron $1,000) providing annual benefits including hike certificates, event access, newsletters, and exclusive calendar access.
• Business Sponsorships Corporate sponsorship program with tiers (Digital Donor $100, Habitat Host $250, Slough Steward $350, Paddy Protector $500, Wetland Conservator $1,000, Marsh Guardian $2,500, Pacific Flyway Defender $5,000) offering event access, logo recognition, calendar sponsorship, and promotional benefits.
• Planned Giving Legacy giving program allowing donors to make financial commitments through bequests, charitable gift annuities, life insurance, real estate, and retirement assets with associated tax benefits.
• Sutter Buttes Calendar Annual 12-month calendar featuring photographs of the Sutter Buttes region, now exclusively available as a membership benefit to support fundraising; raises over $6,000 annually.
• Volunteer Program Volunteer opportunities supporting conservation and stewardship goals, including service as Board Members and Committee Members, with applications submitted through the website.
• Touring the Buttes Hiking, biking, and driving tours of the Sutter Buttes region, with guided interior hikes offered exclusively through sister organization Middle Mountain Interpretive Hikes under a Memorandum of Understanding.

Quantifiable outcome

• Protected over 4,700 acres of conservation lands
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• Sacramento Valley ConservancycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 26 October 2022Preserve Manager for Bear River Preserve (618 acres). Holds Management Easement and Agreement. Partnership ensures long-term management of conservation property.
• Montna FarmsflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerPacific Flyway Defender sponsor ($5,000 tier). Leading agricultural operation in the region providing significant financial and visibility support for SBRLT's conservation mission and annual Swan Festival.
• Skylight Renewable EnergycoreGTM or Marketing PartnerMarsh Guardian sponsor ($2,500 tier). Local renewable energy company supporting land conservation as part of corporate social responsibility.
• California Rice (CalRice)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerMarsh Guardian sponsor ($2,500 tier). Agricultural industry partner supporting conservation of rice-growing lands and wildlife habitat in the Sacramento Valley.
• Middle Mountain Interpretive Hikes (MMIH)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerMarsh Guardian sponsor and sister organization. MMIH provides exclusive guided hikes through Sutter Buttes interior under Memorandum of Understanding with SBRLT. SBRLT members receive hike certificates as membership benefit. Charter Hike Coordinator Margit Sands serves on both boards.
• AgWest Farm CreditcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerWetland Conservator sponsor ($1,000 tier). Agricultural lender supporting conservation efforts in the tri-county region.
• KingsburycoreGTM or Marketing PartnerWetland Conservator sponsor ($1,000 tier) and Digital Donor sponsor. Local business supporting land trust activities.
• DPR (likely DPR Engineering or similar)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerWetland Conservator sponsor ($1,000 tier). Corporate sponsor supporting conservation programs.
• California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CADFW)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerWetland Conservator sponsor ($1,000 tier) and in-kind sponsor. State agency partner in wildlife conservation and habitat protection.
• Central Valley Joint Venture (CVJV)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerPaddy Protector sponsor ($500 tier). Partnership focused on waterfowl and wetland conservation in the Central Valley.
• River Valley Rice & Land LLCcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPaddy Protector sponsor ($500 tier). Magnolia Ranch Agricultural Conservation Easement partner protecting 952+ acres of farmland.
• TerrafirmacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInsurance risk pool for land trusts. Provides legal defense coverage for conservation easements. SBRLT is a member for protection against legal costs of defending conservation.
• The King's AccountantminorGTM or Marketing PartnerDigital Donor sponsor ($100 tier). Local accounting firm supporting land trust through digital recognition.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Others

• Land Trust Alliance: National membership organization that sets standards and administers the Land Trust Accreditation Commission — the body that has accredited SBRLT since 2015. Not a competitor but a key enabling/advisory ecosystem player that defines the operational and ethical standards under which SBRLT operates.

Broad incumbents

• Peninsula Open Space Trust (POST): Major California accredited land trust protecting open space across the San Francisco Peninsula and South Bay. Comparable in easement-and-fee-title model and accreditation, but operates with significantly larger staff, budget, and pipeline than SBRLT.
• The Nature Conservancy (California): Global conservation organization with major California chapter focused on land and water protection, including agricultural easements in the Sacramento Valley. Overlaps with SBRLT's habitat and Pacific Flyway conservation work, but operates at incomparably larger scale and with broader programmatic scope.
• Sonoma Land Trust: Long-established, large California land trust protecting coast, inland, and working landscapes across Sonoma County. Comparable in accredited easement-driven model and community fundraising, but operates at materially larger scale with broader programmatic reach.
• California Rangeland Trust: Statewide California land trust specializing in conservation easements on rangelands and ranchlands. Comparable in agricultural conservation focus and accredited operating model, but operates at significantly larger geographic scale with broader statewide donor base.

Direct peers

• Bear Yuba Land Trust: Accredited regional land trust serving Nevada and Yuba counties in Northern California, operating with similar acreage scale and an agricultural/wildland conservation focus. Directly comparable in mission and tri-county footprint overlap with SBRLT's service area.
• Yolo Land Trust: California Central Valley accredited land trust focused on agricultural conservation easements and working lands protection in Yolo County. Comparable in operating model (easement-driven, Land Trust Alliance accredited, small staff) and in protecting prime California farmland and wildlife habitat.
• Sequoia Riverlands Trust: Accredited California land trust protecting natural and working landscapes in the southern San Joaquin Valley and Sierra foothills. Comparable in agricultural conservation easement focus, Land Trust Alliance accreditation, and small-staff operating model.
• Sacramento Valley Conservancy: Regional nonprofit land trust operating across the Sacramento Valley, focused on agricultural and natural land conservation easements. Direct peer in mission, geography, and accreditation standing — and an active partner, as Sacramento Valley Conservancy holds the Management Easement and Agreement for SBRLT's Bear River Preserve (618 acres).
• Placer Land Trust: Accredited regional land trust serving Placer County, California, with a similar mix of conservation easements, fee-owned preserves, and community-based fundraising. Comparable nonprofit land trust model operating in a Northern California adjacent geography.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/SutterButtesLandTrust
• Instagraminstagram.com/sutter_buttes_land_trust
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sutter-buttes-regional-land-trust

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sutter Buttes Regional Land Trust