The Future of Conservation Easements as Mitigation under CEQA

The California Court of Appeal’s recent decision in V Lions Farming, LLC v. County of Kern provides important clarity on the use of agricultural conservation easements (ACEs) for mitigating the conversion of agricultural land under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), even where the ACEs, operating by themselves, cannot fully offset or replace the agricultural land converted by a project. The case resolves questions that had arisen in recent years about the sufficiency of ACEs — and, more broadly, the use of conservation easements to preserve habitat or other resources — as effective mitigation under CEQA.

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Originally published in Environmental Law News, Vol. 33, No. 2, Fall/Winter 2024, reprinted with permission from the Environmental Law Section of the California Lawyers Association.