Protect Your Land
Stewardship Options
The term Stewardship refers to the “wise use, management and protection of that which has been entrusted to you” (CapeNature Stewardship Manual). Within the context of conservation, stewardship means wisely using natural resources, protecting important ecosystems, effectively managing alien invasive species and fires, and grazing or harvesting without damaging the veld.
One of the best ways of implementing the conservation actions described above is for landowners to enter jointly into a stewardship agreement with an appropriate conservation agency or organization such as Eden to Addo. These range from contractual agreements to non-binding, voluntary agreements such as conservancies.
In order to understand the role of the individual landowner as an important stakeholder within the different conservation corridors, we need to understand what choices are available to landowners to manage their land for conservation and how the different organizations can assist them to do so.
Eden to Addo supports interested and willing landowners who would like to declare their properties as a Protected Environment or Nature Reserve by facilitating the declaration process and providing ongoing support with landowner defined Management Plans, best practice, land restoration projects and ecotourism ventures.
Types Of Agreements
Type Of Agreement: Conservancy
Provided for by CapeNature’s Stewardship Programme
IMPLICATIONS
Any natural land, no specific duration, existing zoning remains, access decided by landowner, no legal status, voluntary certificate of recognition.
BENEFITS TO LANDOWNER
Advice on best practice and management; possible assistance with management plans, provision of farm maps.
Type Of Agreement: Conservancy
Provided for by CapeNature’s and ECPTA’s Stewardship Programme
IMPLICATIONS
Any natural land, requires a constitution for particpating landowners, no specific duration, existing zoning remains, access decided by landowner, no legal status, voluntary certificate of recognition.
BENEFITS TO LANDOWNER
Advice on best practice and management; possible assistance with management plans, provision of farm maps.
Type Of Agreement: Protected Environment
Provided for by The Protected Areas Act (no. 57 of 2003) NEMPA
IMPLICATIONS
Suggested vehicle: legal agreement between landowner and conservation agency but the Act allows for the landowner to submit application directly to Minister or MEC (Part 6, 35(2)).
- Declaration agreement between landowner and Minister or MEC through CapeNature or ECPTA
- Relatively pristine land in a large landscape.
- Suggested minimum: 30 years
- Existing zoning remains
- Access to properties decided by landowners
- Conditions of agreement are not written into title deed and not binding on successors in title unless landowner wishes to.
- Landowner may decide to re-zone to Open Space 3 or Conservation servitude (described below)
BENEFITS TO LANDOWNER
Drafting of management plan and substantial advice and support regarding alien vegetation clearing, fire and game management, fencing etc.
Advice on best practice and management; assistance with biodiversity mapping, provision of farm maps, support with land restoration, possible municipal rates rebates.
Type Of Agreement: Biodiversity Management Agreement
Provided for by the Biodiversity Act (no. 10 of 2004)
IMPLICATIONS
- Suggested vehicle: legal contract between landowner and appropriate agency binding them to a Biodiversity Management Plan.
- Although the Act allows for landowners to submit a draft Biodiversity Management Plan directly to the Minister as part of the Biodiversity Management Agreement (BMA), the minister has yet to agree to this. Relatively pristine land including isolated fragments
- Suggested minimum: 10 years
- Re-zoning not necessary
- Access for landowners must be consistent with legal agreement
- Landowner may decide to re-zone property to Open Space 3 or Conservation servitude (described below)
BENEFITS TO LANDOWNER
Drafting of management plan in partnership with conservation agency.
Other benefits are contingent on resources available to the agency but could include alien veg management, fencing, fire and game management.
If landowner submits draft Biodiversity Management Plan directly to Minister then benefits would have to be negotiated with relevant agencies, however this option has not been tested.
Possible tax incentives for minimum 5 year contract:
ALL conservation and maintenance expenses incurred in terms of the contractual agreement between the landowner and the agency are treated as expenditure incurred in the production of income and for purposes of trade e.g. rehabilitation, alien veg clearing or burning of fire breaks. Conditions apply.
Type Of Agreement: Contract National Park
Provided for by the Protected Areas Act (no. 57 of 2003), and the amendment to this Act (no. 31 of 2004) and implemented by South African National Parks.
IMPLICATIONS
- Area managed under contractual agreement between the proprietor and SANParks
- Critically important sites
- Primary landuse is conservation
- In perpetuity or not less than 30 years
- The management agreement (contract) must have some benefit for nature conservation, and in relation to existing National Parks
- Legal status under Protected Areas Act (Sec. 20), and conservation servitude registered against title deed.
BENEFITS TO LANDOWNER
Drafting of management plan and substantial advice and support regarding alien vegetation clearing, fire and game management, fencing etc.
Tax incentive: municipal rates exclusion for area under contract provided no commercial or agricultural activities take place.
Possible tax incentives for minimum 30 year contract: All conservation and maintenance expenses as required by the management plan are deemed deductible donations and can be deducted from taxable income.
Possible tax incentive for minimum 99 year contract: Taxpayer may deduct the value of their land from their taxable income according to specific criteria.
Type Of Agreement: Contract Nature Reserve
Provided for by the Protected Areas Act (no. 57 of 2003), and the amendment to this Act (no. 31 of 2004) and implemented by CapeNature and ECPTA’s Stewardship Programme
IMPLICATIONS
- Area managed according to a management plan under contractual agreement between the proprietor and CapeNature
- Declaration agreement between the landowner, the conservation agency and the MEC
- Critically important sites
- Primary landuse is conservation
- In perpetuity or not less than 30 years
- Rezoned to Open Space 3 access by landowner, his or her family and permitted friends must be consistent with contract
- Agency must notify landowner of intended access
General public not permitted unless agreed upon
Legal status on three levels: 1) Protected Areas Act, 2) Legal contract, 3) Notarial Deed detailing restrictions.
BENEFITS TO LANDOWNER
Drafting of management plan and substantial advice and support regarding alien vegetation clearing, fire and game management, fencing etc.
Tax incentive: municipal rates exclusion for area under contract.
Possible tax incentives for minimum 30 year contract: All conservation and maintenance expenses as required by the management plan are deemed deductible donations and can be deducted from taxable income.
Possible tax incentive for minimum 99 year contract: Taxpayer may deduct 4% of the full value of their land from their taxable income every year for 25 years, according to specific criteria.
Types Of Land Use
The declaration of a Protected Environment is a new approach provided for in the Protected Areas Act that allows an “individual, organization or organ of state” to motivate for an area to be declared a Protected Environment (Protected Areas Act no. 31 of 2004).
In addition to the above stewardship options, landowners can consider one or more of the following if they wish to retain their land, or a portion thereof, in conservation:
Type Of Land Use
Implications
Conservation Servitude
Notarial deed executed by landowner setting out terms and conditions of the servitude. Notarial deed gets registered against title deed and can be binding on successive owners (approximate cost: R1000). Not limited in duration. Management of the area can be granted to a management authority such as CapeNature.
Open Space 3 Zoning
Contingent on approval from Dept. Agriculture to rezone to another landuse AND on the declaration of a private, contractual, parastatal or public nature reserve. Primary use is for nature reserve.
Resort Zone 1
Contingent on approval from Dept. Agriculture. Subject to environmental acceptability. Used to promote tourism accommodation in pristine circumstances. Can not be sub-divided. Densities of accommodation predetermined according to terrain.
Rural Residential Development
Contingent on approval from Dept. Agriculture. Subject to environmental acceptability. Considered only if meaningful consolidation of farms occurs.
Contractual agreement between municipality and landowner
This is not a common occurrence but is still an option where the municipality is sufficiently convinced of the biodiversity value of a property that they enter into a contractual agreement with the landowner (in terms of contract law, not any of the existing conservation legislation) to keep the land in pristine condition.
