National Conservation Easement Database

Bobby Osborne and John Eustis at Osborne Ridge East

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What is the NCED?

The National Conservation Easement Database (NCED) is the first national database of conservation easement information, compiling records from land trusts and public agencies throughout the United States. Voluntary and secure, the NCED respects landowner privacy and will not collect landowner names or sensitive information. This public-private partnership brings together national conservation groups, local and regional land trusts, and state and federal agencies around a common objective. The NCED provides a comprehensive picture of the estimated 40 million acres of privately owned conservation easement lands, recognizing their contribution to America’s natural heritage, a vibrant economy, and healthy communities.

Before the NCED was created no single, nationwide system existed for sharing and managing information about conservation easements. By building the first national database and web site to access this information, the NCED helps agencies, land trusts, and other organizations plan more strategically, identify opportunities for collaboration, advance public accountability, and raise the profile of what's happening on-the-ground in the name of conservation.

With the initial support of the U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities, NCED is the result of a collaboration between five environmental non-profits: The Trust for Public Land, Ducks Unlimited, Defenders of Wildlife, Conservation Biology Institute, and NatureServe.

Featured Easement Stories

© Fred First (Saving the New Featured Image)

The Old Saving the New

by Mary Bishop
The state of Virginia wanted to build a prison next to the old man's centuries-old farm. But Mastin Fayne "Buster" Osborne didn't relish the idea of leaving his nephew's growing family, his closest kin, with an eternity of headaches.

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© Dan Hipes/FNAI (Nokuse Plantation - Young Longleafs in an Old Field)

Getting Back into the Woods at Nokuse Plantation

by Bruce Ritchie
North Florida philanthropist M.C. Davis says he spent the first half of his life trying get out of the woods -- and the second half trying to get back into them.

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© Rob Bullard/TNC (Duck River, Tennessee)

A Big Win-Win for Farmers and Nature on the Duck River

by Paul Kingsbury
What can be done when a riverside dairy farm desperately needs to upgrade its failing waste treatment facilities or risk being put out of business?

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© Thurston GeoData Center (Aerial view of Holm Farm)

Stewardship Matters: Holm Farm

by Sarah Gage
A local family uses a conservation easement and enrolment in the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program to preserve their farm along the Black River in Thurston County, Washington.

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© Colorado Cattlemen's Agricultural Land Trust (Saguache Creek Corridor, Saguache County)

Saguache Creek Corridor

by Colorado Cattlemen's Agricultural Land Trust
A narrow ribbon of 19,000 acres in the San Luis Valley, the Saguache Creek corridor has a long history of sustaining productive ranches.

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