Easements

Easements are contracts that impose specific obligations on owners. They run with the land and bind successors in title. Developed under rural law, they secure a benefit for one piece of land at the expense of contiguous land. A small number of countries now permit the creation of easements for conservation purposes and waive the contiguity requirement. A conservation agency or NGO can contract with a landowner to prohibit certain forms of land use, and fu-ture owners must comply with these prohibitions. A conservation body may, in some cases, sell its own land with a conservation easement attached.