Recently, the Clackamas County Soil and Water Conservation District’s Board of Directors began reviewing the long-term strategies used by the District to achieve our primary conservation goals centered on water, wildlife, and invasive weeds.
Rainbow over the Beavercreek Demonstration Farm
Discussion quickly revealed a strong concern about the long-term availability of our best farms, fields, and forests. Unlike some areas in our region, Clackamas County still has a vibrant farming community and some of the best farm and forest land remaining in the Willamette Valley. However, the Board concluded that some of these lands will be lost in the coming years due to development.
We need development. New development helps fuel our local economy and provides additional tax revenue needed to provide services to the public. But developing over our most productive soils means those soils will never again be available for producing food and fiber.
Oregon’s progressive land use laws have helped guide development in a way that often protects our more productive land. But not always. For example, there are numerous non-farming uses allowed on Exclusive Farm Use (EFU) lands.
How can the District help assure the continued availability of our most productive lands for future generations? One tool we are considering is conservation easements. We’ve been using temporary easements to help implement larger projects, but perpetual protection of land through conservation easements would be a new approach.
What are the important points about a conservation easement?
- Land covered by a conservation easement stays in private ownership and remains on the tax rolls.
- A conservation easement is a voluntary agreement to restrictions on how the land may be used.
- Soil and water conservation districts are authorized by statute to hold easements.
- Some SWCDs are already using conservation easements as a tool to protect important conservation values.
In May 2014, the Clackamas County SWCD Board of Directors adopted a budget for the July 1, 2014 – June 30, 2015 fiscal year that included a new fund called the Working Lands Legacy Fund. Right now, that new fund is a placeholder for a program to protect our best lands for future generations. The Board has established an Easements Advisory Committee, and Committee members have been discussing various aspects of a possible easement program.
Easements are not the only tool we have available. The District can accept gifts of land per ORS 568.550(1)(e). Land can also be left to the District in a will. A landowner who wants their land to stay in farm or forest production forever may wish to leave their land to an entity such as the District that can manage it in perpetuity.
Please contact Manager Salzer (use the form below) if the idea of protecting your land forever appeals to you. Your interest will help us build a program to help protect our best farms, fields, and forests for future generations.
