| Private land conservation provides an opportunity to address problems of habitat fragmentation and biodiversity loss caused by an increase in the development and parcelization of private land. Conservation easements (CEs) are an innovative tool used by land trusts to protect significant natural qualities of private land in perpetuity, while also allowing the land to remain in private ownership. Traditionally, property represents an individualistic relationship, however, CEs redefine this relationship by seeking to maximize the overlap in private and public goods in property. In this study, I explore the relationship between the common good and private property through an analysis of landowner attitudes and interest in conveying CEs. To address my research objectives I implemented a mixed-mode survey to 664 private landowners in the Whychus Creek Watershed in Deschutes County, OR. I received 257 survey responses, yielding a response rate of 41%. (Abstract shortened by ProQuest.). |
