Preferred Criteria
Ownership: Any landowner must provide a significant conservation outcome in the granting of the conservation easement, e.g. restriction and/or reduction of development rights.
Land: The land would typically contain certain conservation values that can be protected, e.g., open space, agricultural, vegetation, wildlife habitat, timber, scenic, historic, recreational, and riparian areas.
Security: The conservation easement once recorded is irrevocable, and must have sufficient stewardship financing to provide monitoring and enforcement in perpetuity.
Supplemental Criteria
The landowner and/or stakeholder needs to demonstrate one or more of the following—
- Implementation of an environmental conservation plan
- Cooperates with research and/or restoration of species habitat
- Protects water quality for beneficial uses, especially impacts on fisheries and aquatic habitat
- Conserves topsoil and promotes erosion control methods
- Uses organic practices or integrated pest management in agriculture and/or forestry
- Promotes sustainable forestry and agricultural uses
- Utilizes environmental evaluation and management systems
- Cooperates with appropriate resource conservation agencies to develop and encourage best management land use practices
