About Land Conservation

Landowners conserve special places in a variety of ways. Some of the families featured in this collection donated their land for wildlife preserves and public recreation. Others entered into conservation agreements, or as they are often called, conservation easements.

A conservation easement is an agreement between a landowner and a private land trust or government. The agreement limits certain uses on all or a portion of a property for conservation purposes while keeping the property in the landowner’s ownership and control. The agreement is tailored to the particular property and to the goals of the owner and conservation organization. It applies to present and future owners of the land.

Most conservation easements are donated by people who wish to protect a beloved place. Under certain circumstances, easements are sold at a bargain price or fair market value. Donations and bargain sales that meet IRS requirements can result in federal tax benefits. You can learn more about conservation easements by visiting our online Library.

What is a Land Trust?

Land trusts are charitable organizations that work cooperatively with landowners to conserve land in the public interest. Land trusts vary in character and priorities. Most land trusts are private charitable corporations. Some are governmental or quasi-governmental agencies that operate with much of the flexibility and freedom of a private land trust. Some land trusts are quite small, run entirely by volunteers, doing their work in just one municipality or small watershed. Some utilize large staffs of professionals and work region or nationwide.

Some land trusts own and operate preserves and recreation areas open to the public. Others own no land at all but hold conservation easements, which protect certain natural values on properties. Others work to acquire and then transfer critical land to government for use as parks, game lands, etc. (Learn More)

Find a Land Trust

You can easily locate a land trust in your community - PALTA has made it easy by providing three methods by which to search. Search by name, by county or by using our interactive map.

Conservation 101

Learn more on the basics of conservation. Be sure to visit our online Library that features a variety of publications.