CAL. CIV. CODE § 815 :
The Legislature finds and declares that
the preservation of land in its natural, scenic, agricultural, historical,
forested, or open-space condition is among the most important environmental
assets of
For the purposes of this chapter,
"conservation easement" means any limitation in a deed, will, or
other instrument in the form of an easement, restriction, covenant, or
condition, which is or has been executed by or on behalf of the owner of the
land subject to such easement and is binding upon successive owners of such
land, and the purpose of which is to retain land predominantly in its natural,
scenic, historical, agricultural, forested, or open-space condition.
A conservation easement granted pursuant to this chapter
constitutes an enforceable restriction, for purposes of Section 402.1 of the
Revenue and Taxation Code.
(a)A conservation easement is an
interest in real property voluntarily created and freely transferable in whole
or in part for the purposes stated in Section 815.1 by any lawful method for
the transfer of interests in real property in this state.
(b)A conservation easement shall be
perpetual in duration.
(c)A conservation easement shall not be
deemed personal in nature and shall constitute an interest in real property
notwithstanding the fact that it may be negative in character.
(d)The particular characteristics of a
conservation easement shall be those granted or specified in the instrument
creating or transferring the easement.
Only the following entities or
organizations may acquire and hold conservation easements:
(a) A tax-exempt nonprofit organization
qualified under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and qualified to
do business in this state which has as its primary purpose the preservation,
protection, or enhancement of land in its natural, scenic, historical,
agricultural, forested, or open-space condition or use.
(b)The state or any city, county, city and
county, district, or other state or local governmental entity, if otherwise
authorized to acquire and hold title to real property and if the conservation
easement is voluntarily conveyed. No local governmental entity may condition
the issuance of an entitlement for use on the applicant's granting of a
conservation easement pursuant to this chapter.
(c)A federally recognized California
Native American tribe or a nonfederally recognized
California Native American tribe that is on the contact list maintained by the
Native American Heritage Commission to protect a California Native American
prehistoric, archaeological, cultural, spiritual, or ceremonial place, if the
conservation easement is voluntarily conveyed.
All interests not transferred and
conveyed by the instrument creating the easement shall remain in the grantor of
the easement, including the right to engage in all uses of the land not
affected by the easement nor prohibited by the easement or by law.
Instruments creating, assigning, or
otherwise transferring conservation easements shall be recorded in the office
of the county recorder of the county where the land is situated, in whole or in
part, and such instruments shall be subject in all respects to the recording
laws.
(a)No conservation easement shall be
unenforceable by reason of lack of privity of
contract or lack of benefit to particular land or because not expressed in the
instrument creating it as running with the land.
(b)Actual or threatened injury to or
impairment of a conservation easement or actual or threatened violation of its
terms may be prohibited or restrained, or the interest intended for protection
by such easement may be enforced, by injunctive relief granted by any court of
competent jurisdiction in a proceeding initiated by the grantor or by the owner
of the easement.
(c)In addition to the remedy of
injunctive relief, the holder of a conservation easement shall be entitled to
recover money damages for any injury to such easement or to the interest being
protected thereby or for the violation of the terms of such easement. In
assessing such damages there may be taken into account, in addition to the cost
of restoration and other usual rules of the law of damages, the loss of scenic,
aesthetic, or environmental value to the real property subject to the easement.
(d)The court may award to the
prevailing party in any action authorized by this section the costs of
litigation, including reasonable attorney's fees.
Nothing in this chapter shall be
construed to impair or conflict with the operation of any law or statute
conferring upon any political subdivision the right or power to hold interests
in land comparable to conservation easements, including, but not limited to,
Chapter 12 (commencing with Section 6950) of Division 7 of Title 1 of, Chapter
6.5 (commencing with Section 51050), Chapter 6.6 (commencing with Section
51070) and Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 51200) of Part 1 of Division 1 of
Title 5 of, and Article 10.5 (commencing with Section 65560) of Chapter 3 of
Title 7 of, the Government Code, and Article 1.5 (commencing with Section 421)
of Chapter 3 of Part 2 of Division 1 of the Revenue and Taxation Code.
The provisions of this chapter shall be
liberally construed in order to effectuate the policy and purpose of Section
815.