By Candice Abinanti, NACD Director of Communications in collaboration with the NACD Natural Resources Committee 

Land conversion and the loss of working lands to residential subdivisions, solar arrays, data centers, and other development are concerns NACD hears from conservation districts across the country. The American Farmland Trust’s report, Farms Under Threat 2040: Choosing an Abundant Future, states that “From 2001–2016, our nation lost or compromised 2,000 acres of farmland and ranchland every day… if this trend continues, another 18.4 million acres will be converted between 2016 and 2040—an area nearly the size of South Carolina.” The report also points out that, “Over 40% of the nation’s farmland is owned by people over 65, so up to 370 million acres of farmland could change hands in the next 20 years, increasing the possibility that the land will be sold for development.” 

We like to say, “When we take care of the land, the land takes care of us.” If we don’t protect working lands, our ability to feed, clothe, and fuel ourselves is at risk. One tactic to keep working lands working is to permanently protect them through conservation easements. 

What is a Conservation Easement? 

Conservation easements help landowners voluntarily protect their land from development. A conservation easement retains the land’s current use (e.g., farming, ranching, recreation) and the natural resources, habitat and biological diversity, ecosystem services, historical, educational, and other benefits it provides. An easement protects the land against changes to local zoning laws and future development pressures.  

Conservation easements can be donated or sold, each with different benefits for the landowner. A donated easement qualifies as a charitable deduction under Section 170(h) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code. A landowner can also put their land into a conservation easement and be compensated with cash payments by a variety of federal, state, or local programs. Landowners can also sell conservation easements to an organization like a land trust for less than its full market value, enabling both financial compensation and tax advantages. Other financial benefits of conservation easements include reductions in estate taxes, lower property taxes, and, in some states, additional tax credits. 

In this blog, NACD’s Natural Resources Committee dives deeper into conservation easements and how conservation districts can be allies to the land stewards and organizations in their communities, using them as a tool to keep working lands working.  

Meant to Be Farmed 

“I’ve always wanted to protect the property, I was born and raised here,” said farmer, rancher, and NACD Board Member Bob Warner about his land in Colorado. “Warner Ranch is a centennial ranch; it has been in my family for over 100 years.” 

As more agricultural land in Colorado and across the country passes from family ownership to developers, 100 years of land ownership and stewardship across the generations of one family is something to celebrate and cherish.  

“I love the farm and the cattle,” said Warner. “It’s meant to be farmed, and I don’t want it to become an industrial site.”  

Focused on this goal, Warner works with local and national partners and programs, like Colorado Open Lands and NRCS’s Agricultural Conservation Easement Program, to keep his working lands working, protecting their agricultural value through conservation easements and receiving financial compensation for doing so.  

“Conservation districts can be helpful to landowners interested in conservation easements by assisting or being in a position to sponsor an easement,” said Warner.  

In Kansas and Virginia, two conservation districts are embracing these roles. 

Kansas District Becomes First in the State to Hold a Conservation Easement 

The Kearny County Conservation District recently became the first district in the state of Kansas to hold a conservation easement. The easement process was set into motion about five years ago when a landowner in the county approached Ducks Unlimited about placing land in a conservation easement. The landowner’s love for wildlife and desire to permanently protect habitat provided the motivation to pursue an easement. The 1,200 acres of “Arkansas River frontage, cropland, pasture, wetlands, and prairies,” caught the attention of Ducks Unlimited, explained Jim Pitman, a Ducks Unlimited biologist. “For the valuable habitat it provides for waterfowl and the lesser prairie chicken.”  

Like many conservation districts, Ducks Unlimited can hold conservation easements. Consistent with their mission, the land they conserve with easements is typically land with valuable wetland habitats for birds. However, in the State of Kansas, Ducks Unlimited does not hold conservation easements. Without a local land trust in western Kansas to hold the easement, Ducks Unlimited reached out to the Kearny County Conservation District for help. 

Ducks Unlimited secured a grant provided by the North American Wetlands Conservation Act for the bargain sale acquisition of the conservation easement. The easement perpetually protects the property’s conservation values and was deeded to the Kearny County Conservation District at closing. The landowner is reinvesting proceeds from the sale back into the property to upgrade infrastructure and further improve wildlife habitat. Technical assistance is being provided by Ducks Unlimited and the Kearny County Conservation District. The landowner will also be able to realize a federal income tax deduction equal to the donative value of the encumbered development rights. The value of that charitable contribution can be carried over for up to 15 years. 

The conservation district’s role is to monitor the easement, an annual requirement to ensure the land is being stewarded in accordance with the terms of the easement. To support this, a stewardship endowment was established by the Kearny County Conservation District from the sale proceeds to provide the district with funding for staff to monitor the easement and pay for any legal work that could arise down the road. This stewardship endowment is invested, so the interest accrued will continue to grow funding for the district into the future.  

“We can’t spend the principal,” said Kearny County Conservation District Supervisor Bill Simshauser. “But we can spend the interest, and this will help with our monitoring of the easement.” 

A Common Goal to Protect Working Lands in Virginia 

In Virginia, the Eastern Shore Soil and Water Conservation District has been a conservation easement partner to their local land trust, the Virginia Eastern Shore Land Trust, for years. Founded in 2003, the Virginia Eastern Shore Land Trust was required to co-hold conservation easements with other organizations for its first five years of operations per the Code of Virginia § 10.1-1010. In 2004, the land trust approached the Eastern Shore Soil and Water Conservation District, and together they now co-hold 28 conservation easements.  

“The number of easements we hold together is a big success,” said Carmie Ross, District Manager for the Eastern Shore Soil and Water Conservation District. 

The two organizations share a common goal to protect working lands. For each of the conservation easements, the Virginia Eastern Shore Land Trust took the lead in working with the landowners and preparing documentation. The land trust also visits landowners and walks the land annually to ensure all remain in compliance with the terms of the conservation easements. If a landowner is interested in implementing conservation practices on the easement, the land trust refers them to the conservation district for technical assistance. 

The Eastern Shore Soil and Water Conservation District reads annual monitoring reports received from the land trust, keeps its local board apprised of any issues with or amendments to the conservation easements, and helps plan and implement conservation practices on easements. The conservation district also promotes conservation easements and the land trust to landowners in their community and facilitates collaboration among the land trust and local and state governments. This role was recently spotlighted when the conservation district, land trust, and Virginia Department of Transportation worked through a transportation project that took a half-acre of land held in a conservation easement by eminent domain.  

Land in a Conservation Easement Cannot Be Farmed and Other Misconceptions 

Misconceptions around conservation easements abound. One of the most frequently heard misconceptions is that land in a conservation easement cannot be farmed. In fact, many conservation easements “permit working lands allowing for agriculture and timber production,” said Hali Plourde-Rogers, Executive Director of the Virginia Eastern Shore Land Trust.  

For working lands, producers can also “build cattle sheds, hay barns, and other structures that support operations if the structures are pre-planned, designated, and identified in the easement before it is finalized,” explained Warner.  

Conservation easements “protect the conservation purposes, such as preserving working lands, and are difficult to amend,” shared Plourde-Rogers, so care is taken to help the “landowner write the rules.” This includes the choice to keep the land in a conservation easement, either closed or open to public access and recreation. 

Collaboration for Conservation Easements 

When it comes to conservation easements, conservation districts can be collaborators in their communities and resources to local land stewards. For landowners like Bob Warner—interested in protecting land from development and creating a legacy of stewardship for generations to come—conservation districts can educate landowners about conservation easements as a tool to support these goals. Conservation districts can also help connect interested landowners with local or regional land trusts or other organizations that work in this space for legal assistance in establishing an easement. The Land Trust Alliance’s online directory lists accredited land trusts operating across the country. 

Many state and territory laws that established conservation districts permit districts to hold conservation easements. Districts interested in holding easements should consult with state agency partners to confirm this ability and work with others in this space to identify the niches they can fill as collaborators, not competitors.  

“Land trusts are usually most interested in larger acreage properties within their organizations’ priority areas,” observed Pitman. “Smaller acreage tracts in urban areas or very remote areas where land trusts aren’t operating could provide a niche for conservation districts to fill.” Pitman added, “Conservation districts could be a resource to easement holders seeking to do enhancement work to improve the land and implement conservation practices on it.” 

Conservation districts have a long history of helping producers and land stewards reach their conservation goals. As the threat of land conversion and the loss of working lands in communities grows, one way districts can help is by fostering awareness, understanding, and partnerships for voluntary conservation easements on private lands. 

Join us at NACD’s 2026 Annual Meeting in San Antonio to hear more about the Kearny County Conservation District’s experience with a conservation easement during the Wednesday, February 18, 2026, breakout session at 2:45 p.m. CT titled “Local Action, Lasting Impact: Conservation District Programs in Practice,” hosted by NACD’s Natural Resources Committee.