LAND CONSERVATION NEWS 3/22/13
Issue Number 215
2012 a banner year for land conservation: The Georgia Land Conservation Program
has issued its 2012 Annual Report (available at www.glcp.ga.gov). It contains a lot of
interesting information, all pointing to an exceptional year for land conservation. The
Program helped conserve more than 57,000 acres in 2012. Between the inception of the
Program in 2006 and the end of 2012, $197 million in state funds have been used to
leverage approximately $1.125 billion worth of land, conserving 257,105 acres. The
Program uses four financing tools to help accomplish its goals: competitive grants (not
funded in FY 2009-2013); due diligence micro-grants to state agencies ($50,000
awarded); low-interest loans (two made in 2012 to The Nature Conservancy and The
Conservation Fund); and the conservation tax credit (see next article).
Tax credit spurs use of conservation easements: In 2012, GA DNR received 127
applications for certification of conservation land for the state’s land conservation tax
credit program. Two applications were withdrawn. Of the remainder, 112 were
conservation easements held by land trusts, 3 were held by local government and 2 were
held by state government. Seven certifications were for fee-simple land, 6 by land trusts
and 1 by local government. There was one façade easement certification. A total of
43,897 acres were conserved using conservation easements; of those, 38,470 were
conserved by land trusts. Local governments used conservation easements to conserve
241 acres; state government used easements to conserve 5,186 acres.
Thirteen land trusts served as recipients of easements on conservation land certified for
the tax credit: the Athens Land Trust (10 conservation easements totaling 2,672 acres);
Atlantic Coast Conservancy (22 CEs, 7,013 acres); Central Savannah River Land Trust (3
CEs, 251 acres); Chattahoochee Valley Land Trust (7 CEs, 2,968 acres); Conservation
Fund (1 CE, 18 acres); Georgia Agricultural Land Trust (3 CEs, 1,919 acres); Georgia
Land Trust (53 CEs, 15,050 acres); Georgia Piedmont Land Trust (1 CE, 10 acres); North
American Land Trust (7 CEs, 6,559 acres); Oconee River Land Trust (1 CE, 843 acres);
Southern Conservation Trust (1 CE, 8 acres); and the Tall Timbers Land Conservancy (3
CEs, 1,159 acres). Remember that these numbers are inadequate measures of the success
of land trusts; for instance, ten acres conserved in a suburban location may provide more
public benefit than 1,000 acres in a rural location.) Suffice it to say that in 2012, private
non-profit land trusts did the heavy lifting for land conservation. The expectation is that
this record of achievement will continue in 2013. The marked decrease in the state’s tax
credit incentives for land conservation and the marked increase in the Federal tax
deduction for 2012 & 2013 make specific predictions difficult.
Georgia Legacy legislation still in play: The Senate Natural Resources Committee
substituted Senator Ross Tolleson’s S.B. 210 with their own version. The substitute
passed the Senate by a vote of 52 to 2 on March 7, making it past “crossover day.” The
measure is now in the House. The last day of the session is March 28 so there is not much
time left. The legislation essentially substitutes a new Georgia Legacy program for
Governor Perdue’s Georgia Land Conservation Program which was a substitute for
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Governor Barnes’ Georgia Greenspace Program which was a substitute for Governor
Miller’s Preservation 2000 Program which was…
Dates
April 4: Georgia Land Conservation Council meeting at the usual place in Atlanta
(GSFIC Bid Room, 270 Washington Street), starting at 9:30 AM. The agenda will
include a discussion of the proposed Georgia Legacy legislation, S.B. 210 (see
article on page 1).
April 25: A conversation with Wendy Jackson (Freshwater Land Trust) and
Robyn Carlton (Lookout Mountain Land Trust) on how protected land benefits
health and lives. Sponsored by the Southeast Program of the Land Trust Alliance.
To register, contact Heidi Hannapel at hhannapel@lta.com
May: Registration for Rally 2013 opens.
September 17-19: Rally 2013, to be held in New Orleans. The headquarters hotel
is the Sheraton located at 500 Canal Street.
February 5-6, 2014: Fourth Symposium on Advanced Legal Topics in Land
Conservation, Reno, Nevada.
September 18-20, 2014: Rally 2014 in Providence, Rhode Island.
Job Openings
The Central Savannah River Land Trust (Augusta) is still looking for an Outreach
Director to coordinate its publicity, marketing, education and other outreach
efforts. To apply, send a resume and cover letter to info@csrlt.org
The Georgia Land Conservation Center (Athens) is seeking a Business Manager
to assist with financial and office management. The part-time position averages 810 hours per week with flexible hours. To apply, send a resume and cover letter to
hans@galandcc.com
Land Conservation News is a periodic communication produced by the Georgia Land Conservation
Center for land trust leaders and others who care about the future of open space in Georgia. To subscribe or
to contribute news items, please contact Hans Neuhauser at the Georgia Land Conservation Center: 706546-7507 or hans@galandcc.com
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