Yesterday I mentioned a land-conservation scheme in Europe that a Swiss farmer was helping publicize. This followed news of a major donation of coastal land in California to The Nature Conservancy, for permanent preservation.
Jack Dangermond, who with his wife, Laura, has donated $165 million to make the California purchase possible, said that he wanted to set an example of increased public-private partnership for conservation at all levels, from the grand donation to the small-scale civic project. Here’s a brief report from Oregon about an effort already underway:
I live at a place called Kailash Ecovillage in Portland, Oregon. We are an all-rental co-housing community in the middle of the city and we have about an acre of farming here. You can read about us at http://www.
kailashecovillage.org.
And a report from Hawaii:
Great private/public
partnerships in preservation taking place all over. Here is an example from the County of Hawai‘i: County of Hawai‘i
Public Access, Open Space and Natural Resources Preservation Commission (PONC)
This Commission develops two prioritized lists of lands for potential acquisition funding from the Public Access, Open Space, and Natural Resources Preservation Fund. It ranks potential county acquisitions and possible partnerships with the State or nonprofit organizations.
PONC Fund (aka Open Space or 2 percent Fund) 2 percent of Hawai‘i County real property tax revenues collected annually; fund to be used for acquiring lands or property entitlements in the County of Hawai‘i for the following purposes:
- Public outdoor recreation and education, including access to beaches and mountains.
- Preservation of historic or culturally important land areas and sites. Protection of natural resources, including buffer zones;
- Preservation of forests, beaches, coastal areas, natural beauty and agricultural lands; and
- Protection of watershed lands to preserve water quality and water supply.