Serving Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, and other towns of the North Carolina High Country
Founded 05-05-05
May 3, 2007 issue
Blue Ridge Rural Land Trust Celebrates 
Ten Years of Service
Story by Ron Fitzwater
On May 13, 1997, the League of Women Voters of Boone and Blue Ridge Resource Conservation and Development (BRRCD), concerned about the spiraling loss of rural land and culture in the High Country, met to discuss the creation of a regional land trust. By August, the Blue Ridge Rural Land Trust (BRRLT), had been established.
In the beginning, the BRRLT struggled to get on its feet. Executive Director James Coman initially took control of the trust without compensation until funding could be secured to pay salary. “Very fortunately we obtained initial funding from the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation within a few months, and have been going from strength to strength ever since,” Coman said.
Initially, some issues arose between landowners and BRRLT, but Coman and the board worked to build trust. Trust is crucial for the BRRLT to accomplish its mission. Coman explained that the trust adopted a “very low-pressure, low profile, farmer-friendly and somewhat laid-back method of operation, resulting in very good landowner and community relations.”
The official mission of the BRRLT is to “preserve rural communities and culture in northwestern North Carolina (Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Mitchell, Wilkes, Watauga and Yancey counties) through the protection of the land resources upon which they depend.” This is completed without government assistance as BRRLT operates as a nonprofit organization. Aid comes from private citizens, landowners and friends of the program from national, state and local organizations. The list of friends of the program is extensive and is posted in full at www.ctnc.org/partner.htm. However, some of the more recognizable names are the National Parks Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, N.C. Parks and Recreation, N.C. Conservation Tax Credit Program, Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation, N.C. Chapter of the Nature Conservancy, National Committee for the New River and the High Country Conservancy.
To date, according to Coman, the BRRLT has protected nearly 6,500 acres through conservation easements. This land will remain as farmland with some tracts managed by the North Carolina Division of Parks and Recreation.
The amount of protected land has grown steadily over the ten years that BRRLT has been operating. “In the ‘90s there was only one easement closed per year, but today we are closing 15 to 20 per year,” said Coman. Future growth is expected to keep pace with that in recent years. “We are on the verge of our best year ever,” Cowan said. “We have three large projects and about 15 smaller projects that are expected to close in 2007, totaling 3,500 to 4,000 additional acres of protected land.”
Individuals interested in additional information about conservation easements and rural land preservation in northwestern North Carolina can contact the Blue Ridge Rural Land Trust at P.O. Box 2557, Boone, N.C. 28607, or call 336-359-2909, email info@brrlt.org or click to www.brrlt.org.
Conservation Easement 101
As the Blue Ridge Rural Land Trust celebrates its tenth year in operation, Executive Director James Coman proudly points to the nearly 6,500 acres the trust has helped to protect through conservation easements in Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Mitchell, Wilkes, Watauga and Yancey counties. But, what exactly is a conservation easement?
A conservation easement is a written agreement between a landowner and a qualified conservation organization or public agency in which the landowner promises to keep the land in its natural condition without extensive disturbance, and the conservation organization or public agency can enforce the covenants of the easement and monitor the property.
Conservation easements seem to work best when the landowner is motivated by concern to conserve and preserve land that does not require intensive management, and the owner’s plans for the current and future uses of the land are compatible with its natural features. In return, the landowner receives certain tax advantages for the easements.
Restrictions are tailored to the particular conservation values of the land. Some examples of activities that may be prohibited or restricted include industrial and commercial use, mineral exploration and development, subdivision/residential use, access for road or power line construction or extensive timbering. Depending on the size and character of the land, easements may allow parceling of the land, selective timbering, agricultural use, maintenance of water impoundments, hunting and fishing or the construction of a limited number of new homes.
Under state property law, a conservation easement may be created for a period of time or in perpetuity. However, if the landowner wishes to claim federal and state tax deductions, the easement must be granted in perpetuity.
For more information on conservation easements and the Blue Ridge Rural Land Trust click to www.brrlt.org.