Farmland Preservation<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/A><\/P>What Is a Land Trust?<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/P>Land trusts seek to bring lasting conservation benefits to people. Working cooperatively with landowners, these charitable organizations acquire land or conservation easements, or manage land or easements, for conservation purposes.<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/P>The purposes may include:<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/P>protecting water quality<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/P><\/LI>conserving wildlife<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/P><\/LI>providing fishing, hunting, birdwatching, or other recreation<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/P><\/LI>creating new parks, trails, game lands, or other public spaces<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/P><\/LI>assuring the availability of forestland for timber production<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/P><\/LI>preserving productive farmland in support of farm economies<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/P><\/LI>treating abandoned mine drainage or restoring damaged lands<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/P><\/LI>reducing flooding or sequestering carbon<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/P><\/LI>preserving scenic views<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/P><\/LI>establishing neighborhood gardens <\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/P><\/LI>meeting any number of other community needs<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/P><\/LI><\/UL>Many land trusts also maintain trails and other outdoor recreational facilities, run education programs, restore streams and riparian forest buffers, help municipalities with land-use planning, or engage in any number of other activities.<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/P>Search \u201c<\/SPAN><\/SPAN>what is a land trust<\/SPAN><\/SPAN>\u201d at WeConservePA.org/tools for more information.<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/P>What Is a Conservation Easement?<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/P>A conservation easement conserves land in the public interest, but the land stays in the possession and control of private landowners. Conservation is achieved without government ownership.<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/P>A conservation easement is established by mutual agreement between a landowner and a private land trust or government. The easement limits certain uses of the land (for example, subdivision and development) in order to achieve particular conservation objectives. The owner may continue to use the land as the owner wishes\u2014within the constraints agreed to when establishing the easement.<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/P>A conservation easement does not create a right for the public to access a property unless the owner explicitly establishes that right; conversely, public access is sometimes a crucial part of a conservation project.<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/P>Search \u201c<\/SPAN><\/SPAN>conservation easements introduction<\/SPAN><\/SPAN>\u201d at WeConservePA.org/tools for more information.<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/P><\/P><\/DIV><\/DIV><\/DIV>",
"summary": "Local Parks & Open Space - community parks, municipal land, athletic field, public recreation & conservation lands",
"title": "Local Parks & Open Space",
"tags": [
"Pennsylvania land conservation"
],
"type": "",
"typeKeywords": [],
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"accessInformation": "WeConservePA, Irina Beal, GIS Analyst",
"licenseInfo": "
This map is not a substitute for survey work or a title search. Although efforts have been made to make this map as accurate as it can be, WeConservePA makes no guarantees of the map's accuracy, and the organization assumes no responsibility for costs incurred as a result of using this map or the data in it.<\/SPAN><\/P><\/DIV>",
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}