What is Land Conservation?
Land conservation is the practice of purchasing land to steward, preserve, and protect its ecological health, biodiversity, and safeguard natural resources for current and future generations. Land conservation plays a crucial role in source water protection by maintaining or improving the quality and quantity of drinking water sources including rivers, lakes, reservoirs, springs, and aquifers. Approaches to land conservation can include land ownership by public agencies or nonprofit organizations, conservation easements, deed restrictions, and management agreements.
Why Pursue Land Conservation?
Public water providers rarely have ownership of all or even part of the drinking water source area for their public supply well(s), springs, or intake(s). This means that water systems and communities lack control over what activities happen on privately owned lands despite their responsibility to respond to any potential contamination or impacts resulting from those activities.
A potential outcome of drinking water source protection planning is the identification of critical land areas that may have a substantial impact on source water quality or quantity. One strategy for reducing risk from these land areas is to use conservation tools that provide long-term protection and increase local control and management of environmental resources. Land conservation can provide a mechanism for communities to ensure the management of land within their drinking water source area protects and improves the quality and/or quantity of their drinking water sources. The most common models of land conservation are the purchase or donation of land, and the establishment of conservation easements that define allowable land uses on specified portions of privately owned land. Both methods require the participation of willing landowners in Oregon.
Examples of Land Conservation Projects for Source Water Protection
Getting Started with Land Conservation for Source Water Protection
Voluntary land conservation, through collaboration with landowners, is a valuable tool for ensuring land is managed in alignment with drinking water goals.
- Determine if land conservation is an appropriate goal for your community to pursue.
- Review any existing plans and reports your community has regarding your watershed (land area where all water that drains off it runs into the same river, lake, or stream) and drinking water source area (land area that directly contributes to the drinking water source).
- Identify parcels within your watershed and drinking water source area that should be prioritized for land conservation. Public water systems can refer to their Source Water Assessment or Drinking Water Protection Plan to assist with this decision.
- Determine the type of land conservation project that is right for your community. The Department of Environmental Quality's Source Water Protection Workshop web page contains information and examples of land conservation for source water area protection in communities. In addition, the resources below offer guidance on land conservation and land easement planning.
- Find local technical assistance and build partnerships
- Land Trusts typically focus on collaboration with landowners to secure long-term protections for privately owned property. They can conserve land by acquiring property, securing conservation easements, or help facilitate transfers to public ownership to preserve landscapes and protect them for current and future generations. Locate a Land Trust using the Oregon Land Trust's Regional Members map.
- Soil and Water Conservation Districts often work with local landowners, natural resource organizations, and local, state, and federal governments to educate and promote best management practices that protect and conserve soil and water. View the Soil and Water Conservation District in your area by visiting the Oregon Department of Agriculture's Soil and Water Conservation District map.
- Watershed councils are organizations which focus on management, protection, and restoration of a specific watershed. They often work with local landowners, natural resource organizations, and local, state, federal, and tribal governments to address natural resource stewardship in a watershed. Find a watershed council in your area using the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board's Maps and Council Contacts.
- Identify funding opportunities. Visit our Funding for Public Water Systems web page for a list of grants and loans available for land conservation and easement projects. The following organizations are available to support public water systems with grant writing.
- The Rural Community Assistance Corporation assists small municipal and nonprofit water systems with environmental infrastructure projects, community resilience and disaster planning, and community development finance. To learn more about RCAC and the services they provide, visit their Programs and Services web page. To seek support from RCAC, fill out their Request for Assistance form.
- The Oregon Association of Water Utilities works with water and wastewater utilities to provide technical assistance, training, and education on water projects. To learn more about OAWU and the services they provide, visit their Services web page. To request assistance from OAWU, fill out their Contact Us form