Rancho Dos Alamos Joins Over 2,800 Acres of Conserved Rangeland in Santa Barbara County

The Land Trust for Santa Barbara County announced on December 1, 2025, that Rancho Dos Almos, a 587-acre property in the Solomon Hills northeast of Los Alamos, has been permanently conserved.

With this conservation, the organization has added more than 2,800 contiguous acres of protected rangeland by linking Rancho Dos Alamos with nearby conserved properties, including Long Canyon, KickOn Vineyards, and the Los Flores easements. 

According to the Land Trust for Santa Barbara, this is its 62nd conservation easement, accomplished in partnership with landowners Jimmy and Lindsey Dominguez and Steve Lyons. 

“With more than 1,300 acres protected this year alone, we’re seeing what committed partners can accomplish together,” said Chair of the Land Trust Board, Laurel Fisher Perez.

The newly conserved property improves a network of open space, and strengthens ecological connectivity across the northern Santa Barbara County region.

Linking the Rancho Dos Alamos with neighboring conserved lands allows wildlife to move, feed, and breed freely across the landscape. This connected habitat also helps preserve the rural character of the Solomon Hills, which faces ongoing development pressures.

The Rancho Dos Alamos is home to a diverse cultivation, including oak woodland, coastal scrub, and annual grasslands. Additionally, there are different species living in the area, including Coast horned lizards, the California tiger salamander, and western spadefoot.

Besides, the land also supports more common native wildlife such as deer, bobcats, quail, and golden eagles. 

Rancho Dos Alamos adds to a larger conservation effort, with the Land Trust securing over 1,346 additional acres countywide so far this year. Funding for this easement has come from the California Strategic Growth Council’s Sustainable Agricultural Lands Conservation Program (SALC), in partnership with the California Department of Conservation, as stated by the Land Trust of SBC. 

Executive Director Meredith Hendricks noted that conservation at this scale requires long-term commitment and collaboration across the community, as stated in the press release.

SALC is part of California Climate Investments, which allocates the Cap-and-Invest revenue towards the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, strengthening the agricultural economy, and delivering environmental benefits to the underprivileged community.

The Land Trust for Santa Barbara County was founded in 1985 and has been a member of the Land Trust Alliance since 2005. The organization has now conserved over 58,650 acres of natural, agricultural, and open space lands.