2012 is the year of the National Conservation Easement Database

The National Conservation Easement Database (NCED) is the first national database of conservation easement information. Where can you find it? Here at the Conservation Registry. The Easement Database provides data on over 80,000 easements and 18 million acres of land.

Conservation easements are voluntary legal agreements between landowners and conservation entities (public agencies or land trusts) for the purpose of protecting natural resources such as drinking water sources, open space, and vital wildlife habitats. Until now, information on these lands was scattered and incomplete. Through the NCED portal in the Conservation Registry these resources are now accessible in one free, transparent and trackable service. Combining the Easement Database with other land databases that show parcels conserved in public ownership, such as Conservation Registry projects, gives users the most extensive look yet at protected lands in America.

The U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities, with generous support from the Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, the Knobloch Family Foundation, the Graham Foundation, and the USDA Forest Service, assembled a group of five conservation organizations that have extensive local and regional experience working with conservation easements and data systems. The team consisted of the Conservation Biology Institute, Defenders of Wildlife, Ducks Unlimited, NatureServe and the Trust for Public Land.

Easement records were compiled from land trusts and public agencies throughout the United States. This public-private partnership unites national conservation groups, local and regional land trusts, and state and federal agencies around a common objective. The NCED provides a comprehensive picture of the estimated 40 million acres of privately owned conservation easement lands, recognizing their contribution to America’s natural heritage, a vibrant economy, and healthy communities.

Why the Conservation Registry?
Although the database is available through several other web sites, the Conservation Registry was selected as the public face of the database because of its ease of use and familiarity for most users. Open source software and Google Maps make the Registry the most accessible choice, especially for those users without a GIS background.

Additional data fields have been added to the system in order to capture more in depth, easement data. As you explore the portal, check out some of the state reports to see what those new attributes are.

Most importantly, the Registry is voluntary and secure. The National Conservation Easement Database respects landowner privacy and will not collect names or other sensitive information, security which the Registry was able to provide.

Fore more information, go to NatureServe to view fact sheets.

Puget Sound in Washington, showing easement projects (purple) and Conservation Registry projects (orange).

How can a blog be a Registry project?

The Agua Fria Open Space Alliance’s new blog is all about one geographic location, a watershed near Dewey, Arizona. While a blog certainly stretches the definition of a Registry project, the Agua Fria Open Space Alliance’s blog falls within the Registry’s category of wildlife and habitat monitoring, research, education and policy activities tied to a specific geographical location because it is an online location for users to report wildlife sightings in the Agua Fria watershed. The blog also provides background information on conservation in this unique watershed.

From Dr. Garry Rogers, October 29, 2011:
This year Great Blue Herons built nests over one of my stock ponds in Dewey-Humboldt near the Agua Fria River. They started with two nests, but abandoned one. Three chicks hatched. These were the first nests I’ve seen since moving here in 1997.

I first noticed the nests on April 10, when some loud croaking began. I think that was when the eggs were laid. On April 12 I watched a Great Blue Heron chase all 25 of the vultures out of the willow trees along my driveway. He had them ducking and squawking. They came back as soon as he left.

The Agua Fria Open Space Alliance was formed to contribute to the health and sustainable management of undeveloped public and private lands in the Agua Fria River Basin. It seeks to protect physical and biological components of open space through research, education, and effective management.

More and more habitat in this watershed is being converted to development, and with human activities come invasive species and degraded habitat.

“Historical observations indicate that the desert grassland of the lower valleys was once home to thousands of antelope and myriad other creatures…. In the year 2000 only a few hundred antelope could be found, and about a third of these are expected to disappear during the next decade or two.”

The Agua Fria Open Space Alliance’s principal goals are to:

1. Inventory and monitor wildlife, vegetation, invasive plants and animals, and ecological conditions.
2. Design educational materials and experiences.
3. Encourage protection and restoration of native plant and animal communities.

The blog encourages inhabitants to “step out our doors to see native vegetation, birds, and insects.”

From November 28, 2011
The photograph shows a Mourning Cloak Butterfly (Nymphalis antiopa).  I nominate this species to become the emblematic butterfly for the Agua Fria River Basin.  The Mourning Cloak is truly at home among the willows and cottonwoods growing along the Agua Fria River in the heart of the Basin.  Mourning Cloaks mate in early spring, but I have seen adults flying beside the river on sunny days in all months of the year.

The transfer of significance from the past to the future
Dr. Rogers, the blog’s author, uses direct observation and compelling words to describe the world around him. In this way he’s part of a fine tradition of conservation, one definition of which is what another nature writer, Paul Evans called “the transfer of significance from the past to the future.”

Conservation Registry project minimizes human-related food attractant conflicts with Grizzly Bears

Grizzly bear cub in Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge. Photo by Steve Hillebrand.

Did you know? Human-related moralities are the number one cause of death for grizzly bears. Grizzly bear populations were reduced to near extinction before 1975, when the species was listed as an endangered species. The healthy return of the grizzly bear now puts them into direct conflict with humans as the bears try to repopulate their historic ranges, many of which have become human habitation too. Wildlife managers have had to kill and remove record numbers of bears after incidents of conflict.

Late spring, which can leave snow deep in the higher elevations when bears emerge from their winter dens, can drive bears to lower elevations where humans live. Garbage cans, chicken yards, or any unprotected source of food can lure bears into close contact with humans. And when that happens, wildlife managers have almost no choice but to remove the bears.

Educating Humans about bears
In Montana and Idaho, Defenders of Wildlife is working to minimize the number of human-related attractants available to bears on the landscape. Partnering with agencies, landowners, local services and organizations, Defenders provides outreach and education, electric fencing, food-storage lockers and bear-resistant garbage containers in important bear habitat. Take a look at the sites and view the project.

What you can do
Funds are needed to purchase more electric fencing, bear-proof garbage cans and food bins. Volunteers are needed for outreach and education efforts in Missoula, Montana. Contact Jonathan Proctor at Defenders of Wildlife if you can help.

Payette National Forest, Idaho. Photo by Suzanne Stone.

Information and community resources for living with bears:
Missoula Bears

Registry partner, the Wildlife Habitat Council, hosts their 23rd Annual Symposium, called People, Partnerships and Pathways, November 14-15, 2011, in Baltimore, Maryland.

Each year, the Wildlife Habitat Council (WHC) brings together corporate, government and conservation leaders from around the globe to share knowledge and celebrate Earth’s beauty and wonders. WHC is dedicated to increasing the quality and amount of wildlife habitat on corporate, private and public lands. WHC’s portal on the Conservation Registry showcases 576 projects where employee-lead teams create partnerships with other conservation organizations, agencies and community members to implement and manage voluntary wildlife habitat and conservation education programs on a corporate site

People, Partnerships and Pathways
People, Partnerships and Pathways focuses on connectivity: whether it is connecting wildlife through corridors, connecting people to nature, or connecting communities through partnerships. Defenders staff, Kassandra Kelly will talk about the Conservation Registry during the Initiative for Natural Corridors session.

The Initiative for Natural Corridors is a new collaborative effort of the members of the Wildlife Habitat Council, along with  strategic  conservation partners to link partners and WHC members in the corporate sector to additional projects, programs and organizations in order to create “wildlife corridors” or “habitat pathways”  that support both migratory and resident species of wildlife.

The Initiative for Natural Corridors joins existing WHC programs:

Wildlife at Work habitat projects are corporate-driven cooperative efforts between management, employees and community members to create wildlife habitats on corporate lands. These programs exceed regulatory requirements by establishing voluntary programs leading the company and employees to become environmental leaders within their communities, and help achieve the goal of sustainable companies operating in sustainable communities.

Corporate Lands for Learning opens doors to experience innovative teaching and learning techniques and the opportunity to involve local communities in corporate conservation efforts. These programs foster in both children and adults a clear understanding of the interdependence of ecology, economics and social structures in both urban and rural areas.