Land trust census results -- 47 million acres, and counting!

The Land Trust Alliance recently published the results of its 2010 national trust census. The report describes how land trusts continue to make gains in conservation, despite the recession and cuts to government funding. See the full report HERE. The Trustees of Reservations and our affiliate Hilltown Land Trust both participated in the survey. Key Findings of the 2010 National Land Trust Census include:

• Total acres conserved by state, local and national land trusts grew to 47 million as of year-end 2010—an increase of about 10 million acres since 2005 and 23 million since 2000.
• The number of active land trusts has leveled off at 1,723 organizations since the last Census. This includes 1,699 state and local groups and 24 organizations. categorized as national land trusts. California has the most land trusts with 197, followed by Massachusetts (159), Connecticut (137), Pennsylvania (103) and New York (97).
• The number of active land trust volunteers increased by 70% since 2005, while the number of paid staff and contractors increased by 19%.
• On average, a land trust with a strategic conservation plan guiding its land or easement acquisition conserves twice as many acres as a land trust without such a plan.
• From 2005 to 2010, state and local land trusts more than doubled the amount of funding they have dedicated to monitoring, stewardship and legal defense. They also nearly tripled their operating endowments.