Rob Bleiberg, executive director of the Mesa Land Trust in Grand Junction, has been appointed to the Colorado Conservation Easement Oversight Commission.

The nine-member commission advises the Department of Revenue and Division of Real Estate on conservation easements and reviewing applications from groups seeking state certification. Bleiberg serves as a representative from a land trust. He will complete a term that expires in July.

“I am honored to have been appointed to the commission, and I look forward to serving the people of Colorado,” Bleiberg said. “Conservation easements are an important tool for protecting our state’s incomparable natural heritage. It is critical that we have a program that works well for everyone — landowners, taxpayers and all Coloradans — so that we can conserve land today to benefit current residents and future generations.”

The Mesa Land Trust — a private, nonprofit organization dedicated to conserving farms, ranches, wildlife habitat and scenic properties — has protected a total of more than 64,000 acres of land through more than 200 agreements with private property owners. For more information about the group, visit the Web site located at www.mesalandtrust.org.