§ 14.1 - Introduction

• Jurisdiction: Washington

§14.1 INTRODUCTION

A conservation easement is a legal agreement a property owner makes to restrict the activities and uses that may take place on his or her property. Restrictions may include, for example, the right to construct buildings, the right to subdivide the land, and the right to harvest timber. Conservation easements also convey the right to enforce these restrictions to a qualified conservation recipient, such as a local government or a land trust.

The federal tax code, which provides key governing law for most conservation easements, calls these interests "perpetual conservation restrictions" and defines them as "restrictions granted in perpetuity on the use which may be made of real property." Treas. Reg. § 1.170A-14(b)(2). The Uniform Conservation Easement Act defines "conservation easement" to mean a

nonpossessory interest of a holder in real property imposing limitations or affirmative obligations the purposes of which include retaining or protecting natural, scenic, or open-space values of real property, assuring its availability for agricultural, forest, recreational, or open-space use, protecting historic resources, maintaining or enhancing air or water quality, or preserving the historical, architectural, archaeological, or cultural aspects of real property.

UNIF. CONSERVATION EASEMENT ACT §1, 12 U.L.A. 174 (1981).

Conservation easements are used to protect land that has outdoor...