Loss Of Open Space

An estimated 6,000 acres of open space are lost each day, a rate of 4 acres per minute. Looking ahead, the Forests on the Edge project estimates that 44 million acres of private forest lands could experience sizeable increases in housing density by 2030. Public forests are also affected -- the new National Forests on the Edge publication estimates that 21 million acres of private rural lands near national forests and grasslands will experience substantial housing density increases by 2030.The Forest Service has developed a Open Space Conservation Strategy to identify how the agency can best help conserve open space, with an emphasis on partnerships and collaborative approaches. The agency is interested in addressing the effects of the loss of open space on private forests; on National Forests and Grasslands and the surrounding landscape; and on forests in cities, suburbs, and towns.

See examples of open space loss http://www.fs.fed.us/openspace/loss_space.html

site: http://www.fs.fed.us/openspace/

2008 Farm Bill

New Tax provisions pass in the 2008 Farm Bill The Farm Bill (H.R. 2419) which Congress enacted on May 22, 2008 with an override of the President's veto, renews a powerful tax incentive which has helped conserve a million or more acres of natural areas, farms, and ranches across the US. The incentive had expired January 1st, but is now retroactive to the beginning of the year and will last through 2009.
The incentive, which applies to a landowner's federal income tax, will:
Raise the deduction a donor can take for donating a voluntary conservation agreement from 30% of their income in any year to 50%;
Allow farmers and ranchers to deduct up to 100% of their income; and
Increase the number of years over which a donor can take deductions from 5 to 15 succeeding years.

Example:A land owner, who has a taxable estate, owns 100 acres with a fair market value of $3,000,000. Placing a conversation easement on the property restricts the ability of the owner to develop the land and reduces the fair market value of the land. If the value of the land was reduced by the easement from $3,000,000 to $1,500,000, the estate tax savings would be $675,000 ($1,500,000 x 45%).
In addition to reducing estate tax, the landowner receives a current income tax benefit by being able to deduct the $1,500,000 reduction in value as a charitable contribution on their individual income tax returns, if the easement was donated to a qualified charity or certain government entities.

site: http://www.conservationtaxcenter.org/