A Publication by the Pennsylvania Land Trust Association
Spring 2008
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Pennsylvania Supreme Court Ruling Strenthens Conservation Easements
On 12/27/07, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled in Ephrata Area School District versus County of Lancaster, et al. that the School District must secure consent of the County in order to obtain a right-of-way over privately owned land that is subject to a conservation easement held by the County. The 5-1 decision overturned a Commonwealth Court ruling that was detrimental to conservation.
The majority opinion reads: “This appeal presents a question of first impression: whether, under the Open Space Lands Act, 32 P.S. § 5001 et seq., appellee, Ephrata Area School District, must secure the consent of appellant, the County of Lancaster, in order to obtain a right-of-way over privately owned land that is subject to an open space property interest vested in the County. Overruling the trial court, a divided Commonwealth Court panel determined that consent was not required. . . . Based upon the plain language of Section 5011, as well as the agreement granting the open space easement, we disagree and, therefore, reverse.”
The Pennsylvania Land Trust Association joined with the Lancaster County Agricultural Preservation Board, Lancaster Farmland Trust, Chesapeake Bay Foundation and others in working to attain this Supreme Court ruling.
The majority and dissenting opinions can be downloaded at http://conserveland.org/features/PA_Supreme_Court_on_Ephrata_07dec27.
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Land Trust Accomplishments
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Historical Moments
in the Work of Pennsylvania
Land Trusts
1946 - The Greater Pittsburgh Parks Association (renamed the Western PA Conservancy in 1951) makes its first land purchases at McConnells Mill in Lawrence County.
1966 - Natural Lands Trust secures a conservation easement with the Upper Main Line YMCA in Berwyn.
2001 - Pennsylvania Conservation & Preservation Easements Act signed into law.
2007 -Total of 476,550 acres (745 sq. miles) of Pennsylvania protected by 82 land trusts.
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As of 12/31/07, 476,550 acres have been protected by Pennsylvania land trusts. Fifty-two percent (52%) of this land was protected through reconveyance to government; 37% protected through easements; and 11% protected through acquiring and holding land.
Acquisitions - a total of 52,765 acres are owned by 58 Pennsylvania land trusts.
- Large land trusts hold 72% of land protected through acquisitions.
- Land trusts increased their land holdings by 7,837 acres between 2005 and 2007.
- Small and very small land trusts hold 10,723 acres or 21% of acquired lands.
Conservation Easements - A total of 2,233 easements are held among land trusts in PA; 254 conservation easements were executed in 2007 alone, a 66% increase from 2005’s execution rate.
- Sixty-two land trusts hold conservation easements. This has increased from 55 in 2005.
- Thirty-eight land trusts reported conservation easement transactions in 2007.
- Land trusts placed 27,651 acres under easement between 2005 and 2007.
- Large land trusts hold 42% of all easements and 54% of the easement acreage.
- Small and very small land trusts currently hold a total of 702 easements, a 27% increase over 2005. They hold 31% of acreage under easement.
- In 2007 alone, these small and very small land trusts executed 117 easements, making up 46% of the total number of easements acquired in that year.
Reconveyance - Land trusts have reconveyed a total of 247,446 acres to government entities in Pennsylvania.
- 7,665 acres were reconveyed to government between 2005 and 2007.
- The Western Pennsylvania Conservancy accounts for 67% of the acreage reconveyed.
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Land Conserved by Land Trusts
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Figures in this issue are based on a survey conducted by the Pennsylvania Land Trust Association. The data includes only Pennsylvania land transactions completed through December 31, 2007. Some land trusts have also protected substantial acreage outside Pennsylvania; this acreage is not included in these totals. “*” Indicates land trusts that have not reported current data. In these cases, 2005 data has been used.
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6th Annual Pennsylvania Land Conservation Conference
April 3-5, 2008
The Desmond Hotel, Malvern
(Chester County)
Keynote Address: Stories of the Land by Peter Forbes
Thursday, April 3 Seminars
- Greening Your Codes and Building Greener Relationships with Developers
- Appraisals (S&P Course)
- Deer Management
- Nature Photography 101: Telling the Story of Conservation with Photographs
- Leadership on Climate Change
Friday, April 4 Seminars
- Whole Thinking in Conservation
- Winning Local Land Conservation Ballot Measures
- Determining Stewardship Costs: Raising & Managing Dedicated Funds (S&P Course)
- Planning Strategies for Historic Landscapes: Where Land Conservation Meets Historic Preservation
- Establishing Successful TDR Programs: Local, Multi-Municipal, and County Approaches
- Alone in the Field: Staying Safe in the Great Outdoors
Saturday, April 5
- Twenty-one 90-minute workshops and roundtables will be offered.
Download registration materials at http://conserveland.org/conferences/2008/index or contact Nicole for a copy Phone: 717.909.1298 or Email: nfaraguna@conserveland.org
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Lawsuit Challenges Federal Condemnation
On 1/14/08, the Pennsylvania Land Trust Association, Brandywine Conservancy, Natural Lands Trust and eight other organizations filed a federal lawsuit over the U.S. Department of Energy’s designation of the Mid-Atlantic National Interest.
The NIETC designation covers several mid-Atlantic states and includes 52 of Pennsylvania’s 67 counties. The designation threatens hundreds of thousands of acres of natural and recreational lands.
The NIETC is a federal condemnation zone. Within it, the federal government for the first time can override state oversight regarding the placement of new electric transmission lines, even if the state has good cause to disallow a particular line. It enables companies to use the powers of federal eminent domain to take private property, including land trust preserves and lands under conservation easement.
The Association does not oppose construction of new transmission lines; it does oppose establishing federal eminent domain as the primary tool for meeting future energy needs. Reasonable and cost-effective energy alternatives should be considered before lands are taken from property owners and landscapes destroyed.
Learn more at http://conserveland.org/pp/Transmission/legalaction.
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Small Organizations: Don't Lose Your Non-Exempt Status
Beginning in 2008, small tax-exempt organizations have a new filing requirement with the Internal Revenue Service. If you are a tax-exempt organization that normally has annual gross receipts of $25,000 or less and does not have to file Form 990 or 990-EZ, you must file an annual electronic notice, Form 990-N.
The e-Postcard is due by the 15th day of the fifth month after the close of your tax year. Organizations that do not file the notice risk losing their tax-exempt status. Visit http://www.irs.gov/charities for more information.
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PA Proves Successful in Ballot Measures
Including the three conservation referenda held in the 2007 primary, over $122 million was approved by voters statewide during 2007.
Since 1989, Pennsylvania voters in various jurisdictions have approved 107 open space ballot measures, most of them at the municipal level. There were eight successful measures at the county level and two at the state level. In all, $1.71 billion was designated towards the protection of natural resources using these referenda.
Of the 97 local municipal referenda approved since 1997:
- 53% authorized an increase in local earned income
- 37% authorized bonds to finance conservation
- 10% authorized an increase in property taxes
Learn more at http://conserveland.org/pp/policyinfo
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 ConserveLand is a publication of the Pennsylvania Land Trust Association
Nicole Faraguna, ConserveLand Editor
717.230.8560
nfaraguna@conserveland.org
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