When Bay Ridge residents purchased the Bay Ridge Woods to save it from development in 2002, they used a vehicle called a "Conservation Easement."

This Conservation Easement protects the land and grants certain rights and requirements to a land trust. It is a legal document which is recorded with the deed in the land records of Anne Arundel County. It runs with the land forever.

The land is owned by the community and the conservation easement is co-held by the Maryland Environmental Trust and the Bay Land Trust, which purchased (and then extinguished) the development rights.

Any piece of property comes with a “bundle of rights” to the landowner. By giving up some of those development rights in a conservation easement, the land can be protected in perpetuity. The preservation agreement notes the permitted uses of the woods for "passive recreation" by residents such as hiking, fishing and environmental education.

It explicitly prohibits certain activities such as dumping, building, destroying wetlands, hunting and using recreational vehicles that would disturb the natural environment, harm the forest and compromise the conservation values of the woodlands.

OUR RESPONSIBILITIES

The Conservation Easement also describes the responsibilities of the landowner for being proactive in managing the property to ensure the health of the forest and preserve the conservation values protected by the preservation agreement.

A Forest Stewardship Plan had to be prepared by a qualified forester and approved by the Bay Land Trust. The Plan was completed in 2004. It spells out the actions needed to maintain the forest, protect wildlife habitat and water quality and maintain the vegetative community including efforts to control non-native species and re-introduce native species. In addition, a 100-foot buffer to the water with special requirements and care was required.

TWO EASEMENTS

There are, in fact, two conservation easements, similar yet with an important distinction. In order to provide collateral for the bank loan, some of the property, approximately 20 acres, is covered by a separate easement which is subordinated to the bank loan. If the bank were to foreclose on the loan, the easement would not protect that part of the property.

The rest of the property, approximately 80 acres (often referred to as the Big Woods), is protected under any circumstances. When we complete repayment of the bank loan, the easement will no longer be subordinate and that land will also be fully protected forever.

By granting these easements we, as a community, are committed to "preserve and protect
the environment of the Property and to maintain permanently the open-space values and the dominant scenic, historic, cultural, woodland and wetland character of the Property."