Agricultural easements: A farmland preservation tool

ure to the development of 0.1 acres of farmland, on average, for each new resident. California’s population is projected to grow to 58.7 million by 2040. If the same rate of development were to continue, the population increase would result in conversion of about 2.5 million acres of farmland to urban use by 2040 about 10% of the 27 million acres of private farmland now in the state. Furthermore, direct urbanization is only one form of farmland loss. Acres may be removed from production for other reasons, such as: the transfer of water from farming to environmental or urban uses; the steady expansion of wildlife habitat and wetlands restoration programs; and the retirement of land which is no longer agriculturally viable, such as salt-laden acres in western San Joaquin Valley that lack effective drainage. Californians are exploring a variety of ways to minimize farmland loss, including ”smart growth” measures that encourage more intensive urban development. For many landowners and community leaders in California, however, agricultural easements are rapidly becoming the preferred tool for protecting farmland. In voluntarily selling or donating an easement on an agricultural parcel, a landowner gives up the rights to develop the property for more intensive urban uses, while retaining ownership for all other purposes. In return, the landowner receives cash or tax benefits, or both. As legally recorded restrictions, easements are tied to the land rather than to any individual owner. They are usually designed to exist in perpetuity. Easement transactions occur between the landowner and a conservation organization, a nonprofit land trust or a public agency. Landowners may like the technique because of its voluntary character and economic incentives, as compared to more conventional regulations such as zoning, growth and municipal boundary controls. Conservation groups and urban residents like the presumed permanency to protect land with agricultural and other open space values. Easements have been employed for conservation purposes in the United States for more than a century, primarily for protecting unique natural lands such as wetlands, animal and plant habitat, riparian corridors, forests and scenic views. But their application to expressly The AIC study translated that fig-