Conservation Easements Overlay

Learn about the Conservation Easements Overlay, including the definition, benefits, tips, coverage and update frequency.

Available with any of the following subscriptions

  • All plans

Definition

Our Conservation Easements Overlays are the legal agreements between a landowner and a conservation organization or government agency. In these agreements, the landowner voluntarily restricts certain uses of their property to protect its conservation values. Common restrictions may include limits on development, commercial activities or other practices that could harm the natural or cultural features of the land.

The purpose of conservation easements is to preserve and maintain the ecological, scenic, agricultural or historic characteristics of the land for the long term, often providing environmental benefits and maintaining biodiversity. These easements are legally binding and typically run with the land, meaning they apply to future property owners as well.

ConservationEasements2

Key Benefits

  • This dataset serves as a foundational tool for conservation planning, land management and biodiversity preservation efforts.
  • Conservation organizations, government agencies and land trusts utilize this data to identify priority areas for conservation, facilitate land acquisition or restoration projects and monitor compliance with conservation easements.

Tip:  Click on a designated conservation easement area to see the pop-up with information including name, ownership, and easement holder information.

Limitations: 

  • This overlay should be used for reference only. These geospatial data are not legal documents and are not intended to be used as such.

  • The data and maps may not be used to determine title, ownership, legal descriptions or boundaries, legal jurisdiction or restrictions that may be in place on either public or private land.

  • The data are dynamic and may change over time. The user is responsible to verify the limitations of the geospatial data and to use the data accordingly.

Coverage

Contiguous United States (exclude Hawaii and Alaska)

Update Frequency

Annual