When a landowner decides to protect part of a property with a conservation easement, the plan eventually has to become a drawing. The owner, the land trust or other easement holder and the attorney all need to see which land stays protected and which land stays open for other uses. A property survey prepared as a conservation easement exhibit gives all of them the same picture.
The exhibit is a map that goes with the easement document. It shows the edges of the conservation area, the reserved areas the owner keeps and the features that help people find those lines on the ground. Georgia recognizes these agreements under the Georgia Uniform Conservation Easement Act, and many of them run with the land forever. A mistake on the drawing can follow the property for generations, so it pays to get the exhibit right before anyone signs.
Around metro Atlanta, new homes and roads keep reaching into old farms and woodlots. Owners often want to save a creek bottom or a hardwood ridge while keeping a homesite or pasture for family use. The survey is where that split takes shape.
Setting the Exact Limits of the Conservation Area
The conservation area needs lines that someone can find again, measured from known points on the property boundary. A property survey does this by giving each line a direction and a length and tying the starting point to an existing corner of the parcel. Without that tie, the edge of the protected land becomes a guess.
Some conservation lines follow the outer property boundary. Others cut through the middle of the tract, along a stream buffer, a field edge or a ridge. These interior lines are new, so the surveyor sets them from scratch based on the area the owner and the easement holder have agreed to protect.
Natural features raise a special question. A creek can shift its channel over time, and a tree line can grow or get cleared. The parties may choose to describe a line by a fixed distance from a stable point instead of by the feature itself, and the surveyor can show either approach once they decide. Some easement holders also ask for markers at interior corners so their staff can find the lines during monitoring visits.
Separating Conserved Land From Reserved Property Areas
Most conservation easements leave some land outside the protected area or give it different rules. The exhibit should show each reserved area as its own labeled shape with its own acreage. That way, no one has to guess where the homesite ends and the protected woods begin.
Reserved areas come in two common forms. Some sit completely outside the easement, such as a lot the owner may sell later. Others sit inside the easement but allow uses the rest of the land doesn’t, like a building envelope for a future house or barn. The labels should make plain which type each area is, because the rights tied to each one differ.
Size and shape matter here too. A building envelope that looks roomy on paper may not fit a house once setbacks, slopes and a septic area come into play. Owners who talk through future plans with the surveyor before they lock in the lines can catch these problems early. The surveyor draws the reserved areas the parties establish, but the owner and the easement holder decide what those areas will be.
Matching the Survey Exhibit to the Easement Description
The written description of the conservation area and the survey drawing should say the same thing, line for line. Every bearing, distance and corner in the legal description should appear on the exhibit, and the acreage in both should match. When they disagree, people reading the easement years later won’t know which one to trust.
Acreage is a common place for mismatches. The parcel acreage on the deed, the acreage inside the conservation area and the acreage of each reserved area all describe different pieces of land. Those pieces should add up to the whole, apart from small rounding differences the surveyor can explain. An old deed may list a total that doesn’t match modern measurement, which is another reason to read the numbers side by side.
Timing causes trouble too. If someone revises the drawing after the attorney drafts the description, or edits the text after the surveyor finishes the map, the two can drift apart. Check that the exhibit date and revision number match the version the description came from. It also helps when the surveyor prepares or reviews the conservation area description from the same data used for the map.
Showing Access and Existing Features That Affect the Exhibit
The exhibit should show the access routes and existing features that explain how the protected land relates to the rest of the property. Access is the item people most often overlook. If the only road to a reserved homesite runs through the conservation area, the easement terms need to allow it, and the drawing should show where that road sits.
Features that often belong on the exhibit include:
- Roads, driveways and farm lanes that cross into or run beside the conservation area
- Houses, barns, wells and septic areas near the protected edge
- Streams, ponds and wetlands the easement may follow or protect
- Recorded utility and access easements that pass through the land
- Fences, gates and tree lines that mark field edges today
The easement holder may ask for other items based on its own standards. If the owner plans to seek a federal tax deduction, IRS rules call for baseline documentation of the land’s condition at the time of the gift. That report is usually a separate document, though it may draw on the survey. Ask the holder early which features it wants so the field crew can collect them in one trip.
Reviewing the Exhibit Before the Easement Is Finalized
Everyone involved should review the draft exhibit before anyone signs and records the easement. Changing a conservation easement later can be hard, and some holders allow amendments only in narrow cases. A careful review now takes far less effort than fixing a recorded document.
A good review checks the drawing against the plan everyone agreed on. Walk the property with the draft map if you can, and look at where the lines fall near the house, the barn, the driveway and the creek. Confirm that each reserved area sits where you expect and has room for what you intend to do there. Read the labels and notes to be sure they describe each area correctly.
Format matters as well. The easement holder may have its own exhibit standards, and the county recording office may have rules for sheet size and legibility. Confirm these early with the holder and your attorney so the final exhibit doesn’t come back for changes right before a closing or tax deadline.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a conservation easement cover only part of a property?
Yes. Owners often protect one portion of a larger tract, such as woods or a stream corridor, and keep the rest for homes, farming or a future sale. When only part of the land is protected, the survey exhibit has to show exactly where that portion starts and stops.
Does the acreage on a conservation easement exhibit need to match the deed?
Not always, since the deed and the easement often describe different areas. The deed covers the whole parcel, while the exhibit focuses on the protected portion and any reserved pieces. Have your surveyor and attorney compare the figures together so they can explain any gap before you sign.
Can an existing property survey be used for a conservation easement exhibit?
It might work as a starting point. An older survey may not show interior conservation lines, reserved areas or the features the easement holder wants to see. Ask the holder what it requires and have a surveyor review the old survey before you rely on it.
