A conservation community (or conservation development) is a real estate and conservation hybrid model of

land development Land development is the alteration of landscape in any number of ways such as: * Changing landforms from a natural or semi-natural state for a purpose such as agriculture or housing * Subdividing real estate into lots, typically for the purpose ...

, consisting of both

protected areas Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...

and

human settlements In geography, statistics and archaeology, a settlement, locality or populated place is a community in which people live. The complexity of a settlement can range from a minuscule number of dwellings grouped together to the largest of cities ...

, with the primary goal of saving large parcels of land from ecological degradation. This land can be

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

ed land,

agricultural Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating Plant, plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of Sedentism, sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of Domestication, domesticated species created food ...

land,

ranch A ranch (from es, rancho/Mexican Spanish) is an area of land, including various structures, given primarily to ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle and sheep. It is a subtype of a farm. These terms are most often ...

land, or any other type of land that needs protecting from high-impact development. This model is contrasted from other protected area models by integrating human communities within nature, rather than relocating them outside, and as such falls under the IUCN's Category V protected area designation. The model represents an integral balance between people and nature and can sustain for-profit activity such as residential communities, private clubs, or small-scale industrial activity on conditions that ensure the continued protection or ecological restoration of an area.

Overview

Conservation communities are models of sustainable community development, providing an alternative to conventional forms of development. They are adaptable to the needs of different regions and they use small-scale residential development to fund

conservation Conservation is the preservation or efficient use of resources, or the conservation of various quantities under physical laws. Conservation may also refer to: Environment and natural resources * Nature conservation, the protection and managem ...

, eliminating the need to solely depend on funding from private

donor A donor in general is a person, organization or government which donates something voluntarily. The term is usually used to represent a form of pure altruism, but is sometimes used when the payment for a service is recognized by all parties as rep ...

s or

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

s, though they are sometimes additionally subsidized by such investments. This land development model is important to the Environmental movement's goals of

sustainable development Sustainable development is an organizing principle for meeting human development goals while also sustaining the ability of natural systems to provide the natural resources and ecosystem services on which the economy and society depend. The des ...

, Green homebuilding, local

food security Food security speaks to the availability of food in a country (or geography) and the ability of individuals within that country (geography) to access, afford, and source adequate foodstuffs. According to the United Nations' Committee on World F ...

, and responsible management of natural resources. Some of the tools used to create conservation communities are conservation covenants,

ecoforestry Ecoforestry has been defined as selection forestry or restoration forestry. The main idea of ecoforestry is to maintain or restore the forest to standards where the forest may still be harvested for products on a sustainable basis.Rastogi J. (Summe ...

covenants, and other forms of covenant registered to the title of the land. Covenants are a legal contract used to protect the integrity of ecosystem, the ecological health of watersheds (which are damaged by increased development), maintain long-term access to natural resources and associated

value-added In business, total value added is calculated by tabulating the unit value added (measured by summing unit profit sale price and production cost">Price.html" ;"title="he difference between Price">sale price and production cost], unit depreciatio ...

opportunities, protect native plant and animal species, and prevent effects of climate change, climate change impacts. In an effort to avoid

greenwashing Greenwashing (a compound word modeled on "whitewash"), also called "green sheen", is a form of advertising or marketing spin in which green PR and green marketing are deceptively used to persuade the public that an organization's products, aims ...

and in order to increase accountability and public transparency, some conservation communities establish separate federally registered charities or 501(c)(3) non-profit

land trusts Land, also known as dry land, ground, or earth, is the solid terrestrial surface of the planet Earth that is not submerged by the ocean or other body of water, bodies of water. It makes up 29% of Earth's surface and includes the Continent, co ...

, which own the land in fee and extend

conservation easements In the United States, a conservation easement (also called conservation covenant, conservation restriction or conservation servitude) is a power invested in a qualified private land conservation organization (often called a "land trust") or gove ...

to developers and private homeowners. This way, the incentive structure ensures real estate developers stay true to the mission of conservation, with the land trust vested with authority to investigate, report, and penalize infractions. Conservation communities are developed not only to minimize their

ecological footprint The ecological footprint is a method promoted by the Global Footprint Network to measure human demand on natural capital, i.e. the quantity of nature it takes to support people or an economy. It tracks this demand through an ecological accounti ...

, but also to improve (or at least does not diminish) the existing ecological system's performance. The planning stage for the residential community focuses around maintaining and enhancing the ecological integrity of the land. The community, therefore, sits on the least sensitive part of the land from an ecological point of view, and is often built using low-impact infrastructure such as

Nature-based Solutions The term Nature-based solutions (NBS) refers to the sustainable management and use of natural features and processes to tackle socio-environmental challenges. These challenges include issues such as climate change ( mitigation and adaptation), ...

for the civil engineering and LEED-targeted housing. To further reduce broader environmental impact, many conservation communities (whether in whole or in part) generate their own power, pump their own water, and grow food on-site.

The economy

In addition to residential use, conservation communities can supplement their funding through other eco-compatible uses such as sustainable resource extraction, value-added manufacturing opportunities,

organic horticulture Organic horticulture is the science and art of growing fruits, vegetables, flowers, or ornamental plants by following the essential principles of organic agriculture in soil building and conservation, pest management, and heirloom variety preserva ...

, live/work enterprises,

ecotourism Ecotourism is a form of tourism involving responsible travel (using sustainable transport) to natural areas, conserving the environment, and improving the well-being of the local people. Its purpose may be to educate the traveler, to provide funds ...

, recreational and ecological educational opportunities. Through these additional measures, long-term protection of the land is sustained by the economic value created through restrained, eco-conscious business. Additionally, conservation communities can create sustainable employment opportunities for those living in the communities as well as the surrounding region. Ecotourism promotes environmental protection and support for the well-being of local community members by bringing visitors into the conservation community for educational and recreational purposes.

Community

As a novel and intentional approach to human settlement, conservation communities can be designed to strengthen interconnectedness between community members as well as with the broader local community. Doug Makaroff, founder of

Elkington Forest Elkington Forest is a privately managed forest located at the southern boundary of the Cowichan Valley Regional District on Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. Sustainable development is intended for this property. In 2011, the entire p ...

(recently renamed to Malahat Forest Estates) noted that “by building sustainable and relational communities, our lives are richer.”Hard Times Can Increase Innovation and Collaboration
. Davis, Kim (December 13, 2008). ''Vancouver Sun'', Westcoast Homes.

Examples

References

Sources

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community A community is a social unit (a group of living things) with commonality such as place, norms, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given geographical area (e.g. a country, village, tow ...