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For more information contact North Shore Land Alliance
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Protecting Land on the North Shore with A Conservation Easement

Nestled into the village of Oyster Bay Cove, sits Tiffany Creek Preserve. A 450-acre leafy, old growth woodland with grassy fields, and a rippling network of freshwater streams and ponds. On a sunny day hikers can hear chirping gray tree frogs and spot white-throated sparrows fluttering between the cedar and tulip trees. This small patch of preserve is a natural oasis on the North Shore.

But before Tiffany Creek was the preserve we know today; it was once a neighborhood of parcels and private residential properties. On one of these parcels off Cove Road, sat Caroline Dubois’s mother’s home. Growing up Caroline spent hours in the woods of Tiffany Creek exploring, turning over stones in search of salamanders, and swimming in ponds filled with sunfish, trout, and turtles. “I grew up loving the property with deep emotional ties to the land and water,” says Caroline.

As Caroline’s mother grew older, it began time to think about what to do with the property. To Caroline’s family, preserving the land that they cherished was imperative. That’s why, after careful consideration, the Dubois decided to place a conservation easement on the property with the help of the North Shore Land Alliance – forever safeguarding the legacy of her home.

“Knowing that our beloved field and streams would be protected forever gave me great comfort,” says Caroline.

One of the most common ways land trusts, like the North Shore Land Alliance, protect land is through conservation easements. A conservation easement is a voluntary legal agreement that protects a property and its unique conservation attributes by permanently restricting development or other uses of the land that have detrimental impacts.

Founded in 2003, the North Shore Land Alliance was established to protect and preserve, in perpetuity, the green spaces, farmlands, wetlands, and groundwater on Long Island’s North Shore. In doing so, the Land Alliance acts as both a facilitator and custodian of conservation. Since its creation, the Land Alliance holds easements on 182 acres of private and public land in addition to owning 258 acres of preserves which are open to the public. The Land Alliance recently launched their Community Conservation Plan to align with the Federal “America the Beautiful” initiative to protect 30% of U.S. lands and waters by 2030.

Placing a conservation easement has countless benefits to a property owner like Caroline. In addition to protecting the natural beauty of the property, homeowners help preserve history and a way of life while receiving major federal tax benefits. Preserving land from development also helps mitigate and abate the effects of climate change.

For property owners interested in placing a conservation easement, Caroline recommends, “Get all the facts about your property, especially its environmental assets and to get in touch with a local tax attorney to know more about the applicable tax which keep improving for conservationists.”

For next steps on how to place a conservation easement please visit www.northshorelandalliance.org or contact the North Shore Land Alliance’s Director of Conservation at (516) 922-1028.