New Conservation Easements Act

A new Conservation Easements Act has been introduced in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly by Ernest Fage, Minister of Natural Resources. The new act will streamline the process for landowners and conservation organizations wishing to protect private lands through conservation easements.

"Nova Scotia is 75 per cent privately owned," said Mr. Fage. "It is therefore important to encourage private landowners to be good stewards of the land and to protect their properties when they contain ecologically significant features.

"The new act indicates a priority is being placed on voluntary conservation through co-operation by landowners, government and conservation groups."

A conservation easement results from an agreement between a private landowner and a designated conservation organization. The agreement places restrictions on the land for conservation- related purposes. The landowner and successive owners are bound by the restrictions forever or for a time specified in the easement agreement. The conservation organization can enforce the terms of the easement.

Under current legislation, eight groups have been designated and of those eight, three -- Nova Scotia Nature Trust, Nature Conservancy of Canada and the Bras d'Or Preservation Foundation -

• have entered into conservation easements with landowners.

"In Nova Scotia we are fortunate to have several non-government groups actively pursuing conservation easements," said Mr. Fage. "Most notable is the Nova Scotia Nature Trust, which I commend for its success in this regard. They have also been a strong proponent for the new act as it will make conservation easements a more viable tool to achieve our shared objectives."

In the past, a cabinet order to designate property as a natural area was required before conservation organizations and landowners could enter into conservation easement agreements. This step was very cumbersome and often resulted in significant delays. A major feature of the new act removes this requirement for designation by order-in-council.

The proposed legislation responds to requests to limit government involvement in the process, while providing a framework to ensure that easements created are held by appropriate organizations and promote private land conservation. This new streamlined process will encourage private land stewardship and allow conservation organizations and their supporters to achieve positive results.