Private lands next debate in state conservation policy

Since last year, staff members at the Land Trust of Virginia have fielded phone call after phone call from landowners seeking to set aside their property for conservation.

The organization expects to complete as many as 30 conservation easements this year, double the number it sees in a typical year, and it has recorded a fourfold increase in inquiries.

The group is one of many conservation land trusts that have seen a spike in interest over the past few years. More than 1,000 such groups operate across the country, seeking to save land from development by acquiring it or negotiating conservation easements with property owners to limit the use of the land.