Utah Open Lands Conservation Association is a non-profit land trust conservation association in the United States.
It is chartered to preserve and protect open space in order to maintain Utah’s natural heritage and quality of life for present and future generations. This is achieved by assisting private landowners, government agencies and communities in the voluntary preservation of the agricultural, scenic, recreational, historic and wildlife values of open land.
Utah Open Lands started in Summit County and expanded to be a statewide land trust in 1995.
Utah Open Lands' works with landowners who want to preserve their land for conservation purposes. Their primary conservation tool is the conservation easement, which is a permanent, legally binding contract that restricts development to protect the special features of the property. Land ownership often remains unchanged when the land is protected by a conservation easement, meaning that the landowner retains title to the land and can continue to live on the land, use it, sell it, and or pass it on to the next generation. The Farm and Ranch Protection Act made available estate and income tax benefits for landowners who protect their land with conservation easements; these tax incentives are available through the end of 2009. The donation of a conservation easement may be considered a charitable contribution.
Utah Open Lands has effectively conserved over 50,000 acres (200 km2) of critical open land in Utah.
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