Where's Andrew?

Refuge Manager Andrew Gude spent the week of February 9 to 14 at the National Conservation Training Center in West Virginia learning more about Land Conservation Easements .

A significant portion of the wildlife habitat in the continental United States is privately owned. Conservation easements are a valuable tool for protecting working landscapes and habitat values on private land that is adjacent to refuges, and impacts the wildlife and natural resources protected on the refuges.
 
This course provided information on the planning, acquisition, management, and enforcement of conservation easements that enhance refuges like our Lower Suwannee Refuge.

Discussion topics included how to:

• Determine if a conservation easement is the best way to proceed in a given situation
• Engage with the potential sellers, the community, and potential partners in situations when a conservation easement would serve the best interests of the refuge and the property owners
• Acquire conservation easements in accordance with all regulations and relevant policies
• Develop and maintain working relationships with landowners and communities
• Effectively manage conservation easements and their uses once they are established
• Ensure the taxpayers’ interests in the land are protected