‘Easement Revitalization Guidebook’ now available

With the sponsorship of the Open Space Institute, Solid Ground Consulting has researched, developed and tested strategies and tools that land trusts can use to “revitalize” their easements and make them suitable for prime time.

We’re happy to report the “Easement Revitalization Guidebook” is now available. Get in touch and we’ll make sure you get a copy.

Problem easements – those with questionable conservation value, vague or conflicting language in the easement document, or transactional problems – lurk in the portfolios of nearly all land trusts. They’re difficult to monitor and enforce, and sometimes the conservation benefit doesn’t seem worth the effort.

Many groups have chosen to ignore potential problems posed by these easements until some event – such as a high-profile violation, a proposed merger with another land trust or an accreditation application – brings them to the fore. Then the land trust is forced to decide what to do with them.

How land trusts handle early cases of problem easements may set precedents that ripple through all of the land trusts in the country. If the conservation community allows these easements to be inappropriately extinguished or ignored, they risk losing the confidence of the general public, legislators and the IRS. On the other hand, trying to steward bad easements may drain resources without serving any significant conservation value.

The “Easement Revitalization Guidebook” helps land trusts successfully manage problem easements.