Conservation Easements in Alberta

This website was created by the Environmental Law Centre and Miistakis Institute to help landowners, land trusts, municipalities and others find answers to questions related to conservation easements in Alberta. You can browse our top ten questions below or type into the search bar to see what other questions are answered on the site.

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PLANNING (do we want to do this?)

1. Conservation Easement Timeline: Plan, Draft, Enact, Steward, ModifyING 

 GRANTOR (the landowner) GRANTEE (the CE recipient/holder)

Determine your conservation wishes
     • Goals
     • Important features
     • Access

Determine your development wishes
      • Where to you want to maintain development
          potential

Explore the range of tools
       • Are CEs the right tool for you?
       • Do you want to do this now or in your Will?
 
Determine family/corporation wishes
       • What are the desires of your partners?

Determine the title implications
        • What other interests would be affected?
        • Is it up to date?
        • Does a mortgage need to be postponed?

Get advice
        • Legal
        • Financial / tax
        • Succession
        • Conservation easement (experts and
            neighbours familiar with CEs)

Choose an organization to work with
         • Land trust, municipality, or provincial
             agency?
         • Are they an ‘eligible organization’?
         • Review their model CE

Ecological, agricultural or scenic assessment
         • Are you clear on the ecological, agricultural,
            or scenic values you want to protect?

Determine landowner wishes/needs

Provide model conservation easement to landowner

Determine if proposed parcel fits with conservation priorities
  • Ecological value?
  • Agricultural value?
  • Scenic value?
  • Match with area of focus?

[Municipality] Determine if parcel fits with municipal goals/plans

[Provincial agency] Determine if parcel fits with agency plans/goals]

Determine potential costs
  • Negotiation
  • Baseline reporting
  • Payment?
  • Stewardship
  • Legal defence

Fundraising
  • What are the fundraising needs associated with
      securing/stewarding the parcel? 












Agree you want to pursue a conservation easement together

DRAFTING (we’re doing it)

2. CONSERVATION EASEMENT TIMELINE: PLAN, DRAFT, ENACT, STEWARD, MODIFYING

 GRANTOR (the landowner) GRANTEE (the CE recipient/holder)

Determine CE restrictions
   • Based on those in model CE

Make modifications to model CE as desired
    • The model CE is a starting point

Develop management plan

Commission appraisal
    • Need a complete CE to base the appraisal on

Determine landowner recognition needs / opportunities 

Initiate Eco Gift certification

May actually be done by Grantee
    • Request mortgage postponemen
    •  Draft necessary affidavits

Dower

Execution


Create baseline report
• May happen before or after signing CE








ENACTING (making it legal)

3. CONSERVATION EASEMENT TIMELINE: PLAN, DRAFT, ENACT, STEWARD, MODIFYING

 GRANTOR (the landowner) GRANTEE (the CE recipient/holder)

Provide notifications
    • Other interests on the title
    • Local government (council of a municipality, Special Areas Board, council of a Metis settlement)
    • Provincial ministries (Minister of Municipal Affairs, Minister of Infrastructure, Minister of Transportation)

Sign conservation easement and associated documents
     • Conservation easement 
     • EcoGift 
     • Necessary affidavits

Register conservation easement

Obtain new land title

Receive tax receipt or payment





Issue tax receipt or payment to landowner

Provide landowner recognition





STEWARDING (the ‘conservation’ begins)

4. CONSERVATION EASEMENT TIMELINE: PLAN, DRAFT, ENACT, STEWARD, MODIFYING

 GRANTOR (the landowner) GRANTEE (the CE recipient/holder)

Manage parcel according to restrictions

Address identified infractions






Visit property
     • Usually once / year

 Assess parcel against baseline document report

Notify landowner of identified infractions

Make contact with future/new landowners

Manage changes
     • Change is inevitable (in management, ecosystems, etc.)

Manage disputes
      • According to the agreement’s dispute resolution process

MODIFYING

5. CONSERVATION EASEMENT TIMELINE: PLAN, DRAFT, ENACT, STEWARD, MODIFYING

 GRANTOR (the landowner) GRANTEE (the CE recipient/holder)

NB: Modifications are rare and may entail significant ramifications

Determine / agree on critical changes
   • Modifications can only occur if both parties agree

Determine conservation implications

Determine tax / financial implications

Submit modifications to the land titles office

Notify EcoGifts program

Determine how to allocate tax penalties



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