MONTREAT – The Conservation Trust for North Carolina honored a local resident, lawmakers and a conservationist this week for their work in preserving land in the mountains.

Among those recognized was John Cram, owner of the Blue Spiral 1 art gallery in Asheville. Cram was named the Stanback Volunteer of the year for the fundraising work he has done in support of two local land conservation groups, and for his efforts to protect the western ridge of Beaucatcher Mountain.

The awards ceremony “recognizes people who are incredibly committed to conservation and who want to keep the state a wonderful place with a high quality of life,” said Reid Wilson, executive director for the Conservation Trust, a statewide nonprofit. “When we recognize people like this, all of us in conservation get inspired by it, but we also hope it inspires others to get involved and do the same kinds of things.”

At Wednesday night’s ceremony, the group gave its first lifetime achievement award to James Coman, founder of the Blue Ridge Rural Land Trust. The Boone-based group has protected more than 10,000 acres in northwest North Carolina.

Coman said he has been involved in conservation since growing up on a farm in Orange County. He said he was surprised and honored to get the award from the group that he has been involved with since the early 1990s.

“I had accepted my role as the Rodney Dangerfield of North Carolina conservation, but I guess that is no longer the case,” he said.

The Buncombe and Jackson county commissioners shared the Government Conservation Partner award.

Buncombe County commissioners were honored for their program that encourages the use of conservation agreements to protect undeveloped areas. The program has protected more than 2,000 acres since it began in 2004.

The Jackson County Board of Commissioners received its award for adopting a controversial six-month development moratorium that allowed the county to create new ordinances for subdivisions and steep-slope construction.

Wilson said conservation actions like those taken by Buncombe and Jackson counties is especially important in Western North Carolina.

“People are moving to the North Carolina mountains every day, and because of that forests, farms and stream banks are being converted into shopping centers, roads and subdivisions,” he said. “I think we are starting to lose the sense of what the North Carolina mountains are.”