ULUPALAKUA -- Ulupalakua Ranch is donating an easement of nearly 12,000 acres to the Maui Coastal Land Trust, the largest-ever donation of its kind in state history, according to an announcement by the trust.
The agreement, expected to be signed Saturday, ensures that two-thirds of the ranch's 18,000 acres will remain in agricultural use and extinguishes most of the ranch's potential subdivision and residential development entitlements currently available, the announcement says.
The owners reserve the right to develop renewable energy projects, and agriculturally appropriate commercial and noncommercial ventures, it says. Sempra Energy has a lease for a wind energy farm on a portion of the property.
The transaction involves contiguous parcels of land on the leeward slopes of Haleakala, ensuring the property will remain rolling green hills used as a working ranch and a wildlife habitat.
One parcel of approximately 6,000 acres is used primarily for livestock grazing, farming and agri-farming, according to the trust. The property is mauka of Kula Highway and extends from the ranch headquarters to the boundary of Polipoli Spring State Park.
The second parcel is the entire 'Auwahi ahupua'a, a 5,328-acre, rectangular property running lengthwise from the ocean to the 6,000-foot elevation of Haleakala. The mauka portion of the property is home to the 'Auwahi Habitat Restoration Project led by conservationist Art Medeiros and is part of the Leeward Haleakala Watershed Restoration Partnership.
