What Is The Uniform Conservation Easement Act?

Mississippi is one of several states that has adopted a Uniform Conservation Easement Act. Under the Uniform Act, a landowner can place restrictions on the present and future uses of their property with the intent of promoting and/or preserving conservation practices. Furthermore, the federal government via Internal Revenue Service recognizes that the conveyance of a real property interest to a qualified conservation organization to accomplish a specific conservation purpose has potential public benefits and as such could qualify the owner for a substantial tax deduction.

The simplest way to understand the concept involved in conservation easements is to look at the basic rights that come with land ownership. When a conservation easement is placed on a property, the owner may give up certain rights (e.g., the right to subdivide the property, develop the property, etc.) Restrictions on the property are specified in the easement document the conveyance of which must be made in perpetuity in order to receive federal tax benefits. The easement document itself is a legal instrument that is signed and recorded in the county of record. Since the conservation easement runs with the land forever, the restrictions continue with the property, even after the landowner dies or sells the property.

There are three important aspects of any conservation easement that must be met as defined under the Uniform Conservation Easement Act.

First, the easement must meet a definite conservation purpose. The primary purpose, in most cases, would be the protection and/or restoration of primarily bottomland and upland hardwood habitats and associated open spaces, such as intermingled farm land, water bodies, lake fronts or river fronts. In addition upland and bottomland conservation has specifically been made a national priority through the passage of legislation and establishment of other federally funded incentive programs such as the Partners For Wildlife Program, Wetland Reserve Program, Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program, Conservation Reserve Program and the North American Waterfowl Management Plan.

Secondly, in order to qualify as a conservation easement under the Uniform Act, the easement must be granted to or beheld by a "qualified conservation organization." Simply stated, the landowner donates the specific rights they have chosen to relinquish to the conservation organization of their choosing via execution of the easement document. The law defines the qualified conservation organizations to include certain local, state, or federal governmental agencies whose primary purpose is the conservation of natural resources. More importantly, the law also allows donations to publicly supported, private conservation organizations such as the Mississippi Land Trust.

It is important to note that the conservation organization which holds the easement does not actually acquire the rights donated by the conservation easement. Rather, the easement gives the conservation organization the right and responsibility to monitor and enforce the restrictions placed on the property and ensure adherence to the easement document through perpetuity. Given this, it is important that the landowner clearly define and communicate, through the easement document, the rights they are giving up. It should also be noted that the easement does not give the conservation organization, or easement holder, any ability to exercise any rights that the landowner has specifically chosen to restrict. Importantly, however, conservation easements do not allow public access to the property unless specifically provided in the easement document.

A third, but equally important aspect of the conservation easement process is the development of what is referred to as a baseline ecological assessment. This assessment is commonly conducted by resource professionals experienced in understanding ecological progression and associated plant, animal, and physiographic details. It is literally an ecological snapshot of the property at the time of the conveyance. The baseline ecological assessment is important, in that it establishes and records the condition of the property as well as the land uses that exist when the conservation easement is established. The baseline document is then utilized by the conservation organization, serving as the easement holder, to monitor the property and the conditions that exist on the property through time.

Mississippi's landscape and its people are diverse. Because every landowner and every property is unique, a conservation easement agreement can be designed to meet specific, individual needs.

Conservation Easements
What Is a Conservation Easement?
Why Use a Conservation Easement?
What is the Uniform Conservation Easement Act?
Frequently Asked Questions about Conservation Easements
Financial Benefits of Conservation Easements
Federal Income Tax Deduction
Estate Taxes
Local Property Taxes
Land Trusts
What Next?
Appendices

Photos by Michael Kelly