Lands Protected
When the Farmland and Natural Areas Program began in 2003, the county's land protection goal was to protect 5,000 to 10,000 acres. To date, the county has protected over 12,000 acres. Several new projects are in varying stages of completion. See the most recent Land Conservation Map Summary.
As of March 2026, the county completed 156 land protection projects, including:
- 71 permanent agricultural conservation easements, totaling 7,799 acres, including 1,300 acres of natural areas and 49 miles of shoreline
- 56 permanent natural area conservation easements, totaling 1,986 acres, including 33 miles of shoreline
- 33 fee acquisition projects with other public entities, totaling 2,396 acres. including 21 miles of shoreline
The county has spent more than $24.4 million in county funds (28 percent), leveraged more than $38.4 million in non-county funds (43 percent) and received more than $26.4 million in landowner donations (30 percent) to protect these lands valued at more than $88.3 million.
Completed projects
The Thomas Irvine Dodge Nature Center is an environmental education organization in Minnesota. It has four metro locations in West St. Paul, Cottage Grove and Mendota Heights. Founded in 1967 by Olivia Irvine Dodge, the organization was one of the first nature centers in Minnesota. Dodge Nature Center and Preschool are nationally recognized in the field of environmental education.
The center has more than 460 acres of prairies, hardwood forest, lakes, wetlands and miles of open hiking trails. It also has a working farm, orchard, bee apiary, and a variety of animals. Each year, the center is visited by more than 59,000 people for day visits, events, programs, camps, onsite preschool, school outreach, field trips and more.
The county acquired a 156-acre permanent natural area conservation easement on the center’s property south of Highway 110 in Mendota Heights.
The easement — acquired for $500,000, much less than the actual value of the property — restricts all development except for a possible visitor center and provides public access as authorized by the center. The protected property has a diverse landscape, including prairies, hardwood forests, a 10-acre lake, wetlands and hiking trails.
The property is near the Lebanon Hills Greenway that will eventually link Lebanon Hills Regional Park in Eagan and Apple Valley to the Mississippi River in Mendota. The county recently acquired an additional 6.5 acres on the northwestern edge of the easement to construct a greenway tunnel beneath Highway 110.
In 2008, Butler Trust property was protected. The 816 acres is part of a 4,000-acre natural area complex in central Dakota County.
The Butler Trust property provides the connection between the 475-acre Vermillion River Aquatic and Wildlife Management Area (AWMA) and the 2,840-acre Vermillion Highlands Research, Recreation and Wildlife Management Area. Of the total 816 acres, the southern 360 acres was acquired by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources for an expansion of nearby Wildlife Management Area. The northern 456 acres became a new regional park.
The combination of the three properties and joint ownership and management resulted in one of the largest managed natural areas in the region.
The Butler Trust property was identified worthy of public protection because of its rolling topography, high-quality forests and wetlands. The property also contains expansive grasslands and a small lake.
The total purchase price of the Butler Trust property was $14.81 million. Funding for the property was provided through a variety of sources, including the Minnesota DNR, Metropolitan Council, the county and the state.
Overlooking a broad valley carved by glacial meltwater about 12,000 years ago where the Mississippi and Minnesota rivers meet, Pilot Knob was a well known landmark used by river boat captains to navigate the lower portions of the Minnesota River.
It later became the namesake for the current major north-south road in the county. However, well before Europeans began exploring and settling the region, the area including the hill was a sacred gathering place for Native American people. It was named Oheyawahe, "a hill much visited," by the Dakota people centuries ago.
The site holds historical significance. It was also the site where the Dakota people signed a treaty ceding 35 million acres, including most of the southern portion of the state, to the U.S. government. It was also suggested as the location for the new Minnesota Territory capitol. Oheyawahe/ Pilot Knob was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2017.
In 2002, developers planned to build 157 townhomes on the north slope of the area, between Acacia Park Cemetery and Highway 55. A broad coalition of Native Americans, local residents, historians, archaeologists, faith communities and environmental groups united to preserve the land as a public natural area.
In 2006, the City of Mendota Heights, with diverse funding assistance, including $400,000 from the County, purchased 8.2 acres from the developer. In 2007, the City acquired another 17.2 acres from Acacia Park Cemetery, with an additional $400,000 from the county.
The city contracted with Great River Greening, a nonprofit conservation organization, to restore the former prairie and oak savanna plant communities. A small parking area and an unpaved trail lead to the Seven (Dakota) Council Fires Overlook, where the Minneapolis and St. Paul downtown skylines are visible. A new landscape plan has been developed which includes a future pedestrian trail connection to the nearby Big Rivers Regional Trail.
Although a significant portion of the southern part of the county was converted from prairie and woodlands to agriculture in the 1800s, many small woodlots can be seen scattered across the landscape. Often providing building materials and firewood to early pioneers, these remnants of an earlier landscape have remained in the same family ownership for several generations.
One such woodland is located along Highway 3 in Castle Rock Township in an area historically known as Poplar Grove. One landowner, Marcia Hinz, dreamed of protecting her 8-acre portion of Poplar Grove and submitted a Farmland and Natural Areas Program application to the county during the first application round in 2003. Hinz's land proposal was not selected, but staff encouraged her to talk with her neighbors about applying as a group in the future. She was successful in getting three of her neighbors to apply with her in 2005 to submit a larger, joint proposal. In the meantime, she continued to replace invasive species with native species. The combined, 48-acre easement project was recommended for approval in 2005.
As part of the acquisition process, a preliminary Natural Resource Management Plan (NRMP) was developed for all four landowners. The NRMP focused on removing invasive trees and shrubs, such as buckthorn and honeysuckle, and re-establishing native oak forest and savanna species. Several small dump sites were also cleaned up.
Just prior to the county's acquisition of the easements on the Hinz and adjoining properties, Hinz had to move from her property. Determined to make sure the property would be permanently protected, she worked with County staff and the buyer to ensure that the easement would be in place prior to the sale. Thanks to her dedication, she has left a legacy of land protection and natural resource improvement on this and adjoining land.
The Katharine Ordway Natural History Study Area is located on the bluffs of the Mississippi River in Inver Grove Heights. It comprises the northern portion of the larger 1,300-acre Pine Bend Bluffs Natural Area. The nearly 300-acre site was established in 1967 by Macalester College, with the help of a major gift from Katharine Ordway.
The many natural habitats found on the property include:
- Tall grass prairie
- Oak savanna and woodland
- Riparian forests
- Seasonal and permanent ponds and springs, and
- A backwater lake, near the Mississippi River.
The property has more than 600 species of plants and animals. Eleven plant species are unique to Dakota County.
The county acquired a 163-acre natural area conservation easement for $550,000 in 2012. Macalester College gave a significant land value donation.
In addition to $275,000 from the county, funding included $250,000 from the Outdoor Heritage Fund and $25,000 from Friends of the Mississippi River. The college is dedicating the majority of the funds to provide an ongoing source of revenue for natural resource management, research, education and public outreach at the site.
Students from a nearby elementary school use the property on a more regular basis.