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Further Reading :
Appalachian
Corridor Appalachien
Summary of conservation options
www.apcor.ca
Le Centre québécois du droit de l’environnement. Guide des
bonnes pratiques en intendance privée. This document covers all
of the legal and organizational issues with which conservation
groups must contend. It can be ordered online at:
http://www.cqde.org
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A land trust is a non-profit corporation whose main objective is
the conservation of the natural environment for the benefit of
future generations. It works towards that objective by acquiring
property or by negotiating conservation agreements with
landowners.
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The first land trusts appeared
about 100 years ago in the United States, but it was not until
the 1950’s that the movement started gaining significant
momentum. In 2003, the
Land Trust Alliance tooks a census and
identified 1200 land trusts in the United States. The same year,
the
Canadian Land Trust recorded some 100 land trusts across
Canada of which 13 were in Quebec.
While most land trusts operate on a local scale, there are some
conservation organizations which operate at the national level
such as
Nature Conservancy of Canada and
Ducks Unlimited Canada. |
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How does a land trust
work ?
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Land trusts are created when the
residents of a region wish to empower themselves with the tools
required to manage their environment in accordance with their
convictions, particularly when those convictions are ignored by
municipal or regional authorities which have to make a choice
between economic development and the protection of the
environment. They are often founded in an emergency situation in
order to protect a site or to halt land speculation, by citizens
concerned by the impact on natural areas, landscapes and
heritage sites of unbridled development of their regions. These
citizens thus have a mean to undertake a concrete and efficient
action.
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The land trust’s activities are
guided by a Board of Directors which is elected in a General
Assembly of the members and is responsible for managing the land
trust and for ensuring that the objectives defined in the
Charter of the Corporation are achieved. It therefore falls to
the Board to establish the criteria which will define all land
acquisition and conservation agreement projects. The Directors
must also look after financing, by applying for grants from the
various levels of government and private foundations as well as
by organizing fund raising campaigns. |
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Conservation
Agreements
The outright acquisition of a property is without a doubt
the easiest way to ensure its conservation but is not always
financially realistic for a land trust. Consequently, land
trusts will rather negotiate conservation agreements with
landowners. While some agreements such as letters of intent
or rights of first refusal have time limits, they can give
the land trust the time required to raise the funds
necessary to purchase a coveted property or to find a
partner organization.
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| The conservation easement is a tool used by many land
trusts.
Following an evaluation of the ecological value of
the property, the two parties agree upon a conservation
management plan which describes permitted, limited and
proscribed uses of the land. A deed executed by a notary
ratifies the agreement with a term of 25 years or in
perpetuity. In the case of the sale of the property, the
easement remains in effect, and it is the land trust’s
responsibility to ensure that its terms are respected.
Making a land donation to or signing a conservation easement
with a land trust can give the landowner certain fiscal
benefits and reductions in municipal and school taxes. For
more information on the conditions, please refer to
Environment Canada’s
Ecological Gifts Program
and to the
Programme de conservation du
patrimoine naturel en milieu privé of Quebec
Ministry of Sustainable Development, the Environment and
Parks..
Nonetheless, the decision to enter into these types of
agreements must come from the environmentally-minded
landowners. As you can see in the
Testimonials, it is
because some landowners want to preserve natural spaces for
future generations, protect ecosystems menaced with
development, and conserve the beauty of the natural
environment, that they willingly limit their rights to their
own property, for the good of the community.
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