Kim Good is Project Manager with Miistakis Institute in Calgary, Alberta.
Kim Good provides a current state assessment in September 2012 of tools in the Alberta Land Stewardship Act for ecological goods and services. Kim describes the concept of land swaps (in Alberta usually involving public land being swapped for private land).
Kim also describes conservation directives. Conservation directives are an uniquely Albertan tool enabled through regional plans under the Alberta Land Stewardship Act. If the government deems a land parcel so valuable for public benefit, a conservation directive can be registered with the land title. The conservation directive puts a restriction on land use. The land owner is compensated. It is not an conservation easement. It is not voluntary. Conservation directives can be used for the protection, conservation or enhancement of environmental values, natural scenic, esthetic values or agricultural values. The precise nature and purpose of the conservation directive must described and the specific land parcel it is applied to must be identified. The landowner must be notified and given information on their right to seek compensation and how to do so. Regulations will have to clarify further aspects of the conservation directive process. There is an appeal process for compensation (and it is a right) but not an appeal process for the declaration of a conservation directive. Municipalities have a recommendation role around conservation directives.
Kim Good was the speaker at a workshop of Ecological Goods and Services in Edmonton, Alberta, Sept. 6, 2012 presented by the Greater Edmonton Alliance.
