The Nebraska Land Trust

Guidelines for Conservation Easements

1. The Nebraska Land Trust will acquire easements to preserve lands that:

• remain essentially in their natural state,

• are ecologically, historically or archeologically significant,

•  serve as wildlife habitat, or

• are used for low-impact agriculture.

2. While a Trust-held easement is not required to provide for public access, easement donors will be encouraged to allow such access for educational, archeological and scientific purposes.

3. Trust-held easements will permit hunting, fishing or trapping if otherwise permitted by law on the property and if in compliance with the donor’s wishes.

4. The Trust will seek unrestricted pre-paid stewardship fees in most cases and annual monitoring fees whenever feasible to accompany donated easements and will request (require) that the easement donor continue to pay property taxes.

5. Available Trust funds may be used to purchase easements where the landowner would not otherwise create an easement and the land in question is wildlife habitat or has ecological, historical or archeological significance.

6. Easements inside residential or commercial developments will not be accepted unless some or all of the savings derived from the tax benefits will be used to protect and/or restore the easement area, add habitat or otherwise substantially improve conditions for wildlife.

7. The size of an accepted easement will be governed by its location, the conservation values of the covered land, the stewardship and monitoring fees being donated and whether the site would contribute to preserving surrounding conservation-quality land. 

8. The Trust will endeavor to defend its easements from willful or accidental violation, subject to its legal and financial resource limitations.

9. The Trust will take reasonable and diligent steps to adopt appropriate land trust standards and practices as promulgated by the Land Trust Alliance.

10. The Trust will require that all easements accepted or acquired by it must satisfy applicable Nebraska statutes governing conservation easements as well as the requirements of Section 170 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended.

     

11. The Trust will require that all easements accepted or acquired by it must contain language holding the Trust harmless by indemnification from the landowner as to any real estate tax or civil liability resulting from the Trust's status as a holder of the easement.

     

     

Home