Isn t there a less expensive way to preserve land than purchasing it?
Land trusts are always happy to receive donations of land. However, purchase is often necessary to ensure that environmentally sensitive lands will be preserved. Holding title to land ensures the right to decide how the land will be used. Acquiring a conservation easement on land gives a land trust the rights to use the land in the ways specified in the easement. About Land Use What will happen to the properties purchased by the Butters Land Trust? The land trust will make decisions about land use in accord with the wishes and needs of the neighborhood and wider community and following the guidelines of environmental preservation. For example, one parcel might be used as a public picnic area, while another might be kept as open space, with hiking trails built through it. The land trust will hold title to the lands in perpetuity or until a public agency, like the city, chooses to purchase or receive title to them.
Land trusts are always happy to receive donations of land. However, purchase is often necessary to ensure that environmentally sensitive lands will be preserved. Holding title to land ensures the right to decide how the land will be used. Acquiring a conservation easement on land gives a land trust the rights to use the land in the ways specified in the easement.