Stewardship

When MALT acquires a conservation easement on a property, we also take on an obligation to ensure that the land is managed in a way that is consistent with the terms of the agreement, even when protected properties pass to new owners and plans for a property change. In the years since MALT acquired its first easement, our stewardship responsibility has grown substantially and will continue to do so in the future.

The landowners are the stewards of the land while MALT's responsibility is to "steward" the easements that we hold. The conservation easements granted to MALT do not give us the right to manage this land. Land management, although it must be done in accordance with the provisions of the easement, continues to be the responsibility of the landowners. We think this is the way it should be.

One of the main tenets of our program is that agricultural land and the future of agriculture in Marin County are best protected by continued operation of farms by the families that know this business and have taken care of the land for generations.

Our goal now, as it was in 1980, is to be partners in stewardship with landowners by providing an option that can help farming families keep their land farmland forever.

For more information on our stewardship program, contact Patricia Hickey, Stewardship Director, at 415-663-1158, ext. 304 or phickey@malt.org.