Very well done local Inventory and assessment of exiisting conservation easements in Bay County Florida. Prepared by: Neil J. Lamb, Ph.D. Edwin J. Keppner, Ph.D. Co-Chair Conservation Committee and Conservation Committee Bay County Audubon Society Bay County Audubon Society For: The Bay County Audubon Society, Inc. December 2004.

This work has been overlooked by FDEP and other natural resource agencies in Florida.   They should take another look though because this effort helps to lay a foundation for planning local green infrastructure. Many exisitng conservation easements are already in place that have been negotiated via various state, regional or local regulatory processes (like FDEP). Unfortunately, though easements have been and continue to be created the state and regional agencies have not perfected the linkage that ought to be in place with local tax assessor's or planning offices.  

These regulatory easements are often buried in the files of the regulatory agencies doing littlle good for anyone. Efforts like the Bay County one have located and mapped these easements on GIS and are a good starting point or project along the way to systematic planning of an area's green infrastructure.   Other local governments and local environmental groups need to examine this work and duplicate it in their areas. FDEP needs to work out a system of standardizing the mapping and distribution of these easements to the affected local governments and property appraiser.

An Inventory of Conservation Easements in Bay County, Florida  (Quite a large file - extended download time)