Conservation Easements in Alberta

Land trusts as qualified organizations

The terms land trust and conservancy are more or less interchangeable. In general, they refer to non-profit, charitable organizations that have as one of their core activities the acquisition of land or interests in land (like conservation easements) for the purpose of conservation. The hallmark of a land trust is the direct action they take to protect the local land base. They hold those lands or conservation easements in trust for future generations. Land trusts and conservancies are often local in scope and operation, but may be provincial, regional or even national (though national organizations tend to have regionally-focused offices). Most land trusts focus on conserving the biological values of land, but land trusts across the continent have been established to protect scenic, historical, agricultural and recreational lands as well.

Land trusts provide:

• conservation efforts tailored to local landscapes and local concerns;

• the opportunity to conserve private land, not just public land;

• organizational creativity, flexibility and responsiveness; and

• empowerment of citizens to conserve land in their area.
  
  

A land trust’s flexibility is perhaps its greatest strength. Aside from the common theme of taking direct action to conserve land for future generations, there are no set guidelines for what a land trust will and will not do. Looking across the continent, here is a taste of the variety:

• Some are very small, volunteer-run groups who work in just one neighbourhood; some are large, working on a regional or national scale, and employing several staff.

• Though all land trusts acquire interests in land, some own lands and operate them as nature reserves, while others own no land but hold conservation easements, and some do both. Most rely solely on donations of land and conservation easements, but some raise money to buy properties and easements.

• Some land trusts buy land and turn it over to public agencies to make parks; certain land trusts provide land conservation and land use planning services; some work with other land trusts to protect land, each offering their specialty to the process.

• Some land trusts were organized to protect a specific piece of property, and some to protect certain resource or land use types; some manage lands owned by others; some provide succession planning services; some simply facilitate transactions by other parties.

As is clear from this short list, land trusts can take many different shapes in their pursuit to conserve land for future generations.

There are currently very few land trusts in Alberta, relative to similar landscapes across Canada and the U.S. This is due to a variety of factors: low population, early predominance of large cross-province land trusts, low levels of environmental funding and others. Few land trusts have a robust staff complement, and financial sustainability is a continuing challenge. Like land trusts elsewhere on the continent, on-going stewardship is necessary and the importance of effective monitoring and stewardship increases with the complexity of the conservation easement restrictions.

Existing land trusts represent several key opportunities for conservation easements. First, even for small land trusts conservation easements are part of a land conservation program, so the critical step of articulating a conservation goal and need is undertaken deliberately. Second, they have access to – and are targeted by – networks and resources. This causes them to be part of a private land conservation community almost by default. As such they have a high level of experience and expertise in structuring and managing conservation easements.

The main issues Alberta land trusts currently face are the potential pitfalls that may come from mixing purposes for conservation easements, their relatively low organizational capacity, and their limited experience as a group with non-ecological, natural scenery and agricultural conservation issues.

List of land trusts in Alberta

Choosing which qualified organization is best for you

As a grantor considering a qualified organization to help conserve your land, it is important to understand what each one is and what each can do. Some of the things to think and ask about include:

• What are their priorities as an organization?

• What are their conservation priorities?

• What tools do they use that might be of use to you?

• What sorts of land do they work with (land use, ecological importance, size, locales)?

• What is their history and their future strategic focus?

The best way to get this information is to call and talk to someone who coordinates their conservation easement or land securement program. It is also advisable to talk to neighbours who have direct experience with various qualified organizations.

For land trusts, the by-laws of incorporated non-profit organizations are a matter of public record, and can be obtained through the corporate registry. As each land trust is a registered charity, you can also search Canada Revenue Agency, Charity Listings online and find out some basic information about them.

Many municipalities have their own websites, which may provide access to information such as municipal development plans and other planning documents; environmental or conservation programs; budgets; and staffing structures. Because a land conservation program may be managed within any of a number of departments (planning, parks, and agriculture), calling the local municipality or local councilor may be the best first step.

 Are you a qualified organization?

Comparison of aspects of municipal and land trust conservation easements

Though the conservation easement tool is the same regardless of who the qualified organization is, the way that tool is used can be different. The following is a side-by-side comparison of how a conservation easement is employed by a municipality versus a land trust.