CONSERVATION EASEMENTS & OIL AND GAS DEVELOPMENT HOW THE TWO - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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CONSERVATION EASEMENTS & OIL AND GAS DEVELOPMENT

HOW THE TWO CAN COEXIST

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Colorado Cattlemen’s Agricultural Land Trust (CCALT)

• Founded 1995
• First land trust founded by a livestock

association

• 6 other western states have followed

Colorado’s lead (WY, MT, TX, CA, OR & WA)

• State-wide land trust
• Nationally Accredited Land Trust
• 292 conservation easements
• More than 465,000 acres conserved

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What a conservation easement seeks to accomplish

This… Not this…

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The Basics of Conservation Easements (10,000 foot level)

• Voluntary agreements held by Qualified

Organizations (501(c)3, Govt. or Tribes)

• Created under both state and federal law
• Runs with the land
• Recorded in the property records
• Landowner retains title to the property
• Perpetual
• Meant to restrict certain uses in order to protect

certain resources

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Eligibility Requirements

• Legal requirements (Conservation

Purposes)

• Relatively natural habitat
• Outdoor recreation or education
• Open space/scenic
• Historically important areas
• Organizational requirements
• Depends on the organization

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What a conservation easement does…

• Restricts development (including oil and gas) and

subdivision

• Typically prohibits severance of water rights and

mineral rights (those rights owned by the surface

• wner)
• Protects designated resources

What a conservation easement does NOT do…

• Require public access
• Prohibit the property from being sold
• Stop condemnation
• Stop development of minerals (typically)

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What rights are typically conveyed through an easement?

• Development rights (including mineral rights if owned by

landowner)

• The right to divide the property
• The right to share in proceeds earned from condemnation
• The right to be a party to negotiations with third parties

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Energy and Conservation: Traditional Resources

• Mining by surface methods (eg, open pit coal

mining, commercial gravel, etc.) is prohibited.

• Subsurface mining (eg, oil & gas) is allowed if…
• It is limited
• It is localized
• It is not irremediably destructive of significant

conservation interests

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What do conservation organizations care about?

• Protection of the conservation values
• Siting of infrastructure and spacing
• Reclamation
• Bonding (sometimes)
• Other rights being sought
• Roads
• Future lines

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Negotiating with a Conservation Organization

• Review Title
• Call the conservation organization
• Respect the easement & the organization
• Recognize the rights of the easement holder
• Understand that your work is taking time and energy

away from organization’s primary mission and

• bjectives

CASE STUDY (Weld County)

Background:

• 640 acre ranch
• Easement conveyed in ’09
• Protect scenic views, ranchland, native

prairie and prairie obligate species habitat

• Severed mineral estate

Request:

• Develop one well pad per 320 acres

Solution:

• Negotiated to one well pad per 640 acres

What worked:

• Early communication
• Communication

throughout

• Respectful negotiation
• Mutual understanding

Questions?

Erik Glenn Executive Director Colorado Cattlemen's Agricultural Land Trust 8833 Ralston Road Arvada, Colorado 80002 (303) 225-8677 EGlenn@ccalt.org

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Background:

• 729 acre ranch
• Easement conveyed in ’08
• Protect scenic views, ranchland,

riparian corridor and sage grouse habitat

• Landowner owns mineral estate

Request:

• Develop mineral estate post

easement Solution:

• No surface occupancy lease

What worked:

• Early communication
• Communication throughout
• Respectful negotiation

CASE STUDY (North Park)