Conservation Easement

The owner of a piece of nature has the prerogative to visit frequently, prevent damage to its natural values and maybe even enhance them. But what happens if the property is sold or the owner dies? A Conservation Easement is a legal mechanism that can protect the land over a longer term. This document is an agreement between the owner, the Grantor, and a qualified receiving organization, the Grantee. When signatures on the agreement have been duly witnessed, the easement is then registered on the title of the land and remains there after its ownership changes.

A Conservation Easement limits what can be done now and in the future. The Grantee has the legal right to inspect the property and enforce adherence to the conditions set forth in the easement. After researching the matter and investigating several qualified organizations, the Nature Conservancy of Canada was approached about an easement for Wood Frog Farm. After several rounds of negotiations, an agreement was reached on conditions to protect the property for many years into the future.

Easement Conditions

This set of conditions is described in the Conservation Easement Agreement, (edited version—certain personal information, signatures and irrelevant legal details have been removed). Although not the final version, it details the types of restrictions that can be applied to a property, including these (outlined in Schedule B):
  1. No subdivision of the property.
  2. A single-family home of 2500 square feet or less can be built, with disturbed land < 3 acres.
  3. No draining of ponds or wetlands.
  4. No introduction of non-native species.
  5. No depositing of dangerous toxic or non-biodegradable garbage.
  6. No motorized vehicles allowed off roads and driveway in a way that would compact the soil.
  7. No commercial feedlot.
  8. No open-pit or surface mining.
  9. Exploration for oil or minerals regulated by Alberta Surface Rights Act.
  10. No chemical herbicides or pesticides.
  11. No commercial removal of trees.
  12. No commerical or industrial facilities.
  13. No game farming, livestock, or penned wild species.
  14. No aircraft facilities.
  15. No commercial recreational activities or signs/billboards.
  16. No wildlife-proof fences.
  17. No hunting or trapping animals.
  18. No agricultural grazing.
Once the Conservation Easement Agreement was completed and signed, it was registered on the title of the property in Leduc County. The tax implications of the donation to the Nature Conservancy of Canada were then considered. Government of Canada rules (national criteria, guide to easements) encouraged donation of ecologically sensitive land to a qualified conservation organization by giving the Grantor a substantial tax reduction for the year of the donation. The value of the reduction would be higher if the land were inspected by an agent of Environment Canada and judged to be ecologically sensitive. The value of the donation was defined as the difference between market value of the land before and after the Conservation Easement was in place, hence a full appraisal by a qualified appraiser was needed. Perry Appraisals did this work and issued an estimate of the value of the Conservation Easement. The appraisal was submitted to Environment Canada along with detailed information about Wood Frog Farm and the Conservation Easement. In 2004, Environment Canada issued a statement of fair market value of the Conservation Easement under the Income Tax Act. This was submitted with personal tax returns. The tax break was substantial.

The Nature Conservancy of Canada conducted a thorough baseline survey of plant and animal species at Wood Frog Farm in 2004. They have continued to do annual assessments of conditions on the property in compliance with the Conservation Easement every year since then. An employee of the Conservancy visits the property each year and walks the meadows and trails to see if conditions have changed. The Conservancy also inspects aerial photos from year to year. In 2012 they detected an amazing violation of the Conservation Easement Agreement. Someone had cut a wide path right through the trees along Tide Creek to allow passage of All-terrain vehicles (ATVs) from the east to west boundaries of Wood Frog Farm! The slide show below shows damage caused on Wood Frog Farm by snowmobiles and ATVs in defiance of obvious No Trespassing signs.
As you can see, a fence and large signs were erected in October of 2012 to protect the property, but by May of 2013 part of the fence had been torn down and thrown into Tide Creek. Evidently not everyone in Leduc County respects conservation values or private property rights.

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