Do land trusts hurt biodiversity?

• Position: Real Estate

Land trusts that focus on biodiversity should consider the impact of real estate market forces when acquiring land, according to a study by Stanford (Calif.) University. Without good data and an understanding of the laws of supply and demand, land trusts risk doing more harm than good for biodiversity.

"Until recently, conservative buyers were a very small part of the land market--they didn't have much impact," notes Gretchen Daily, professor of biological sciences. "But now there are over 1,500 land trusts operating in the United States and, together, they can change land prices and patterns of development."

The full or partial purchase of land has become a cornerstone of efforts to conserve biodiversity in countries with strong private property rights, but harm arises when land trust activity elevates land prices and displaces development onto land where conservation is needed the study maintains.

"Land trusts have become so powerful that their collective purchases could actually backfire by drawing development toward sites with high conservation value," Daily explains. "Protecting lands that lack biodiversity is not only a waste of money, but undermines future opportunities by increasing development pressure on unprotected lands."

The study found that market feedback can be especially worrisome if lands outside of nature reserves have considerable ecological value, and if there are...