Y’all may recall HB1890/SB2099 from last session. This bill, without specifically defining “conservation easements,” was paving the way for them by creating the farmland preservation fund to allow the TN Commissioner of Agriculture (or his office) to acquire “agricultural easements” that “imposes limitations or affirmative obligations on the owner of the servient estate, the owner’s heirs, and assigns with respect to the use and management of the servient land, structures or features thereon…"

 The key word in this definition was “servient.”  That is precisely the definition of a conservation easement (or in this bill “agricultural easement”) where the landowner becomes the servient (lesser) estate to the holder of the easement who becomes the “dominant” estate holder.  Environmentalists years ago realized what they were creating were actually “conservation servitudes”, but they knew landowners would not take kindly to that nomenclature and they intentionally called them “conservation easements” because all landowners know and deal with “easements” on a daily basis. 

This bill was stopped last session, but we know it will return. We ask that everyone educate themselves on this topic so that when session starts in January you’ll be prepared to talk to your legislators about the negative implications of the bill. This interview from Children’s Heath Defense with the amazing Margaret Byfield (who has been both Solari Pushback of the Week and Hero of the Week) is a great place to start. 

If you’d like to dive even deeper into the topic, the following link is a helpful resource.

 https://home.solari.com/food-series-the-30x30-land-grab-with-margaret-byfield/ 

We'd also like to remind y'all that our latest publication "Working Successfully With State Leaders Who Will Take Responsibility " is available in PDF form and for purchase in print in the Solari bookstore. 

We hope all of y'all have a great week,