Innovative Land Protection
Wildlands and Woodlands Land Aggregation Pilot Project
To help advance the Wildlands and Woodlands (W&W) vision, the New England Natural Resources Center is engaged with multiple partners to aggregate proposed conservation easements on predominately private forest lands into one large project consisting of approximately 21,000 acres across Massachusetts. Over 120 landowners are participating. In turn, the Aggregation Project will seek funding from a variety of federal, state, local, and philanthropic sources to compensate landowners for the development rights on their property. Participating landowners will provide a matching donation by accepting cash payment less than fair market value. The motivation for this effort and the steps required for its completion are outlined below.
- Why aggregate land protection projects?
- What has been accomplished to date?
- Next Steps
- Conservation Appraisal Loan Fund
Why aggregate land protection projects?
- Most small land trusts in Massachusetts lack qualified staff to complete land conservation projects that require significant fundraising.
- A recent shortage of funding for land conservation projects has resulted in a large number of landowners who are interested in protecting their land. The 1.5 million acre goal of W&W requires protecting many forest properties that have great value in aggregate, but that would be challenging to fund as individual projects.
- Aggregating multiple land conservation projects from across the state results in a broader array of conservation values being protected on a larger number of acres.
- Economies of scale for appraisals and other due diligence costs can be achieved to reduce overall acquisition expenses. By accepting payment equal to 75% of the fair market value, a majority of participating landowners will provide a substantial contribution toward the purchase of the conservation restrictions (CRs) all together.
- CRs will require written forest management plans, monitoring of forest harvesting, regular communication with landowners, and other activities to ensure sustainable management of private lands. Most, but not all properties, will permit some level of public access.
What has been accomplished to date?
- Broad criteria for conservation projects were established that accommodate a variety of local, regional and statewide objectives within the W&W vision.
- Eight land trusts submitted 129 properties totaling nearly 21,000 acres. Most of the properties have been mapped using GIS, which allows examination of the properties from a variety of natural resource perspectives.
- Submitted projects are currently being appraised. Appraisals for individual properties are being paid for by sponsoring land trusts. Once appraisals are completed, each participating landowner will be asked to sign an 18-month Option Agreement with the sponsoring land trust. The Option Agreement specifies the price paid at 75% of the appraised value and the terms of the CR.
- A qualified conservation intermediary is being sought to serve as the applicant for CR purchases, monitoring endowment, and closing expenses. It is anticipated that the intermediary will be guided by an advisory committee consisting of representatives from each of the sponsoring land trusts that wish to participate.
- Funding for this initial pilot project work has come from grants from individuals and foundations. Funding for the Aggregation project will be sought from local, state and federal programs as well as private philanthropy from foundations and individuals.
Next Steps
- Complete the individual conservation restrictions.
- Analyze the results of the project in terms of numbers of parcels and landowners, acreage, and geography of the protected lands with respect to major conservation criteria.
- Develop a summary of the Aggregation Project for distribution and application elsewhere.
- Explore interest among land trusts, funders and the state in replicating the Aggregation Project in other parts of the state.