With just over a million total acres, the Trust Land Section manages nearly 600,000 acres that include all rights (fee simple), leaving the balance for which the Trust only maintains management of the subsurface estate. This ownership structure requires diligent analysis and constant interaction across TLO resource groups to determine the highest and best use of Trust land. Development and management of the surface estate is geared toward strategic, novel agreement structures favoring efficiency and scalability, as well as branching into new asset classes such as mitigation marketing.
The TLO generated $2.5 million in total revenues during FY16 through management of the surface estate. This includes leases, land sales, interest on land sale contracts, and easements. The most significant portion of this revenue, 80 percent, is derived from sales though the Land Sale Program as well as various negotiated sales. It is important to note that since inception, $70.5 million, or roughly 37 percent, of all TLO revenue has been derived through land sales, but less than 3 percent of the land has been sold. The TLO is effectively generating revenue through land sales and doing so prudently in order to effectively fulfill the Trust’s goal of perpetuity.