Creating a Conservation Easement with KLT
Qualifying Criteria
The property is within the state of Kansas or Missouri.
The owner has clear legal title to the property and is willing to grant the conservation easement for the property through a legally binding agreement that is perpetual and enforceable.
The property is in relatively undeveloped natural condition or agricultural use and large enough (usually more than 20 acres) that its conservation value will remain, even if adjacent properties are developed.
KLT Priorities
Lands that contain endangered, threatened, or rare species or natural
communities.
Lands that contain, or have the potential to contain, ecosystems of
educational or scientific value.
Lands that are recognized to possess outstanding scenic qualities.
Wetlands, floodplains, or other lands necessary for the protection of
water quality.
Prairies, woods, and other indigenous communities.
Lands of agricultural, forestry, hydrological, geological, or wildlife
habitat significance.
Lands adjacent to, or encompassed within, publicly owned or other protected
lands.
Buffer areas adjacent to existing Kansas Land Trust lands or other
protected lands.
KLT is particularly
interested in natural area corridors important for the movement of wildlife between habitats or through developed areas so that natural areas
do not become isolated.
Factors Leading to Declining an Easement
The property is small, and there is little likelihood that adjacent
properties will be protected.
Adjacent properties are being developed in a way likely to
diminish the conservation values of the property.
The landowner insists on provisions in a conservation easement that
would, in the Board's opinion, seriously diminish the property's primary
conservation value or KLT's ability to enforce the easement.
Another organization or agency deemed more appropriate by the Board is
willing and qualified to hold the easement and to carry out long-term
monitoring of the property.
There is reason to believe that an easement would be unusually
difficult to monitor or enforce, as in the case of multiple or fractured
ownerships, frequent destructive trespassing, fencing restrictions,
irregular configuration, inadequate access to the property for monitoring,
etc.
There is reason to believe that the property, or neighboring lands, are environmentally contaminated. Inspection of the land by a qualified expert in botany, biology,
geology, or other appropriate discipline does not support the claims or
reports made regarding the land.
The property is associated with a development proposal that would
create a perception problem for the Kansas Land Trust. Before accepting
any parcel, consideration will be given to the political consequences and
public perception of the conservation easement.
A Step-By-Step Guide
The Kansas Land Trust takes its stewardship role seriously. Once it accepts a conservation easement, KLT must protect the property forever, "in perpetuity." This is a significant commitment of the personal and financial resources of the Kansas Land Trust, but it is a promise that can never be ignored or broken. Consequently, the Board of Directors must carefully evaluate each proposed easement with respect to KLT's conservation goals and managerial abilities and the real public benefits indicated.
Attributes of Land Candidates
KLT Priorities
COMPLETING A CONSERVATION EASEMENT
A Step-By-Step Guide
Once you decide to enter into a conservation easement, you will have made an important decision that will ensure that your land remains as it is for future generations. You and KLT will follow a series of steps on the way to finally signing and recording the Deed of Conservation Easement. This legal document will make your conservation plan official. We recommend that you consult with your own legal and financial advisors throughout the process.
- One:
- Determine if a conservation easement is the right tool for your land protection goals. Review the information in this packet and do your own reading and research. Consult with your legal and financial advisors.
- Contact KLT at (785) 749-3297 or info@klt.org for any additional information you might need.
- Determine if a conservation easement is the right tool for your land protection goals. Review the information in this packet and do your own reading and research. Consult with your legal and financial advisors.
- Two:
- Fill out the “Conservation Easement Application”, and return it to the KLT office. Enclose a legal description of your land; section, township, and range designation; and aerial and location maps, if available. This doesn’t commit you to pursuing a conservation easement—submission of the application simply allows you and KLT to determine if a conservation easement is appropriate for your property.
- A KLT representative visits your property to talk with you further about the easement process and to assess the conservation values of the property.
- The KLT staff and Board of Directors make a preliminary assessment of your property to see if it meets the qualifying criteria of lands to protect and to determine a relative priority.
- Three:
-
You and KLT discuss the providing for the long‑term monitoring need of your property through the Stewardship Fund. When you donate a conservation easement, KLT requests a tax‑deductible contribution to the Stewardship Fund, often utilizing some of the tax benefits resulting from the charitable nature of the easement donation.
- KLT begins compiling an inventory and documenting the conservation values of your land.
- You and KLT discuss your plans for your land in terms of allowed practices and stewardship.
- Photographs and other documents are assembled in order to establish a "baseline" definition of the property to be protected.
- Four:
- You write a "letter of intent" to donate a conservation easement to the Kansas Land Trust.
- You inform KLT of your intentions regarding a Stewardship Fund donation.
- More information and research is exchanged between you, KLT, and your legal and financial advisors at the collaborative conservation easement drafting and negotiation stage. A KLT “model easement form” will be modified and tailored to reflect your wishes and the unique conservation values of the property.
- You obtain a "subordination agreement" from your mortgage lender, if appropriate. This is an agreement that ensures the easement will not be extinguished in the event of a foreclosure.
- A title report for your property is ordered.
- A survey of your land is ordered, if necessary.
- You write a "letter of intent" to donate a conservation easement to the Kansas Land Trust.
- Five:
- If you plan to claim an IRS income tax deduction, you engage a qualified appraiser to complete an appraisal near the date of signing the easement.
- The survey and title reports are reviewed and approved. Carry out any necessary responses to the resulting report.
- Attachments to the easement are assembled, such as maps, reports, baseline documentation, and the subordination agreement.
- The conservation easement is finalized.
- The KLT Board of Directors reviews and passes a resolution to accept the easement..
- If you plan to claim an IRS income tax deduction, you engage a qualified appraiser to complete an appraisal near the date of signing the easement.
- Six:
- You and KLT negotiate your conservation easement, fine-tuning the
language.
- KLT records the Deed of Conservation Easement at the county of Register of Deeds office.
- KLT provides you a letter acknowledging your donation for tax benefit purposes.
- If you plan a tax deduction, you ensure an appraisal and IRS Form 8283 are completed and forward both to KLT for our signature.
- You and KLT negotiate your conservation easement, fine-tuning the
language.
- Seven:
- KLT holds an event, according to your desires, and dedicates the easement - a time to celebrate!