Economic incentives and legal tools for private sector conservation

Duke Environmental Law and Policy Forum

Volumn 8, Issue 2, 1998, Pages 209-243

  Bowles, Ian ^a   Downes, David ^b   Clark, Dana ^b   Guérin Mcmanus, Marianne ^a  

^a Betty and Gordon Moore Center for Science and Oceans

^b Ctr for Intl Environmental Law

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

EID: 0031860725     PISSN: 10643958     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: None     Document Type: Review

References (189)

1. See Convention on Biological Diversity (last modified Nov. 19, 1997) 〈http://www.biodiv.org/conv/ratification.pdf〉.
2. See United Nations Conference on Environment and Development: Convention on Biological Diversity, 31 I.L.M. 818, 827 (1992).
3. See generally CYRILLE DE KLEMM & CLARE SHINE, BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY CONSERVATION AND THE LAW: LEGAL MECHANISMS FOR CONSERVING SPECIES AND ECOSYSTEMS (1993); DANA CLARK & DAVID DOWNES, WHAT PRICE BIODIVERSITY?: ECONOMIC INCENTIVE AND BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION IN THE UNITED STATES (1995).
4. See generally CYRILLE DE KLEMM & CLARE SHINE, BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY CONSERVATION AND THE LAW: LEGAL MECHANISMS FOR CONSERVING SPECIES AND ECOSYSTEMS (1993); DANA CLARK & DAVID DOWNES, WHAT PRICE BIODIVERSITY?: ECONOMIC INCENTIVE AND BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION IN THE UNITED STATES (1995).
5. See DE KLEMM & SHINE, supra note 3, at 172.
6. See id.
7. See id.
8. See id.
9. See id.
10. See id.
11. See id.
12. See id.
13. See id. at 172, 242; see also Daniel C. Stockford, Property Tax Assessment of Conservation Easements, 17 B.C. ENVTL. AFF. L. REV. 823, 824 (1990).
14. In theory, private individuals could purchase conservation easements as well, but they would not receive any favorable tax treatment for doing so because relevant tax policies limit the types of easement holders that can receive tax benefits. See discussion infra Part III of tax incentives for easement.
15. See DE KLEMM & SHINE, supra note 3, at 172.
16. See Stockford, supra note 12, at 824 (listing states with legislation authorizing conservation easements).
17. See DE KLEMM & SHINE, supra note 3, at 243-44 (summarizing recent survey of Canadian provinces).
18. See MINN. STAT. §§ 103F.515, 103F.516 (1997). Minnesota also provides that land subject to such an easement is exempt from property taxation. See id. § 272.02.
19. See MASS. GEN. LAWS ch. 184, § 31 (1996).
20. See id. ch. 40, § 8C.
21. See id. ch. 184, § 32.
22. 16 U.S.C. § 3837, 3837a (1994).
23. See id. § 3837a(e).
24. See id. § 3837a(a).
25. See id. § 3837a(f).
26. See id. § 3837c.
27. See, e.g., MINN. STAT. § 103F.515 subd. 3, 6 (1997).
28. See DE KLEMM & SHINE, supra note 3, at 172.
29. See id. at 245.
30. See Stockford, supra note 12, at 845.
31. See DE KLEMM & SHINE, supra note 3, at 244.
32. See id.
33. See id.
34. CC arts. 730.2, 731.1, 733, 738.1.
35. Interview with Mr. Roger Zusserey, Ministère de l'Environnement, des Forêts et du Paysage (May 8, 1995)
36. See id.
37. See DAVID D. GREGORY, THE EASEMENT AS A CONSERVATION TECHNIQUE app. II at 44-45 (1972).
38. See id at 44.
39. See id.
40. See id.
41. See Lic. Augustin Atmetlla, Manual de Instrumentos Juridicos Privados para la Proteccion de los Recursos Naturales II-2 (1995).
42. See id.
43. See id.
44. See id.
45. See id.
46. See id.
47. See John L. Hollingshead, Conservation Easements: A Flexible Tool for Land Preservation, 3 ENVTL. LAW. 319, 330-31 (1997). Traditionally, covenants included in the instrument for land sales were "restrictive," limiting the activities of the purchaser; covenants included in leases, on the other hand, could impose positive obligations on the purchaser.
48. See id.
49. See id.
50. See CYRILLE DE KLEMM & CLARE SHINE, THE CONSERVATION OF NATURAL HABITATS OUTSIDE PROTECTED AREAS: A COMPARATIVE LEGAL ANALYSIS OF THE UNITED KINGDOM, FRANCE, AND ITALY (PART II, FRANCE) 245 (1993).
51. See id.
52. See id.
53. See id.
54. See CYRILLE DE KLEMM & CLARE SHINE, THE CONSERVATION OF NATURAL HABITATS OUTSIDE PROTECTED AREAS: A COMPARATIVE LEGAL ANALYSIS OF THE UNITED KINGDOM, FRANCE, AND ITALY (PART I, UNITED KINGDOM) 50 (1993).
55. See Endangered Species Protection Act, §§ 50-55, 4 Austl. Acts 194 (1992).
56. See Nature Conservation Act, § 41, 1 Queensl. Acts 20 (1992).
57. See Endangered Species Protection Act, 1992, pt. 4 (Austl.); Nature Conservation Act, 1992, pt. 4 (Queensl.).
58. See DE KLEMM & SHINE, supra note 53, at 31, 50.
59. See DE KLEMM & SHINE, supra note 3, at 247 (citing ORDONNANCE INSTITUANT DES CONTRIBUTIONS A L'EXPLOITATION DU SOL DANS DES CONDITIONS DIFFICILES ET POUR DES PRESTATIONS DE CARACTERE ECOLOGIQUE, 20 Decembre 1989).
60. See id.
61. See id.
62. See 16 U.S.C. §§ 3831-32 (1994).
63. See id. §§ 3833-34.
64. See 7 C.F.R. § 704.1 (b) (1997).
65. See 43 U.S.C. § 1701 (1994) (declaring that it is United States policy to transfer and acquire federal lands, through land exchange and other means, in order to serve the national interest, including protecting the quality of ecological, environmental, and scientific values).
66. See id. § 1716 (establishing criteria and procedures for exchanges of public lands or lands within the National Forest System and private lands when such and exchange is in the public interest, considering a range of needs, including recreation and fish and wildlife).
67. See Bruce Babbitt, The Endangered Species Act and Takings: A Call for Innovation Within the Terms of the Act, 24 ENVTL. L. 355, 365 (1994) (citing Land Exchange Agreement between the United States of America and the Barron Collier Company, dated May 12, 1988, on file with Department of the Interior).
68. See Friedrich Von Zezschwitz, Environmental Taxes in Germany, in TAXATION FOR ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION: A MULTINATIONAL LEGAL STUDY 65, 91 (Sanford E. Gaines & Richard A. Westin eds., 1991).
69. See id at 91.
70. See 26 U.S.C. § 170 (1994). The amount of a contribution exceeding 30 percent of the adjusted gross income in a given year can, however, be carried over and deducted over the next five years. See id.
71. See Von Zezschwitz, supra note 67, at 91.
72. See 26 U.S.C. § 170.
73. See id.
74. See id.
75. See id.
76. See id.
77. See id.
78. See id.
79. See id.
80. See id.
81. See 26 U.S.C. § 175(a) (1994).
82. See id. § 175(c) (3).
83. See id. § 175(b).
84. See CYRILLE DE KLEMM & CLARE SHINE, THE CONSERVATION OF NATURAL HABITATS OUTSIDE PROTECTED AREAS: A COMPARATIVE LEGAL ANALYSIS OF THE UNITED KINGDOM, FRANCE, AND ITALY (PART III, ITALY) 54 (1993).
85. Preferential tax treatment of socially desirable activity is the ideal policy. In practice, however, preferential tax treatment is often accorded to activities benefiting politically powerful interests that sometimes have large social and environmental costs. See infra Part III.H.
86. See DE KLEMM & SHINE, supra note 3, at 241; see also Stockford, supra note 12, at 844-45.
87. See id.
88. See MINN. STAT. ANN. § 272.02(10), (11) (West Supp. 1998).
89. Id. § 272.02(10).
90. See id. § 272.02(11).
91. See Programa de Reserva Particular do Patrimônio Natural (RPPN) Decreto No. 98.914 de 31 de Janiero de 1990, Art. 10.
92. See id.
93. See id.
94. See id. at Art. 50.
95. Colentânea da Legislação Federal de Meio Ambiente, Brasília: Instituto Brasileiro do Meio Ambiente e dos Recursos Natruais Renováveis 1992, Lei. 4,771 de 15 de Setembro de 1965, Art. 30 (e), 18 § 20.
96. See Decreto 4/89, Ley de Areas Protegidas, Art. 31 (published by CONAP: Consejo Nacional de Areas Protegidas). In practice, the regulatory agency, CONAP, reportedly visits the site before approving the designation
97. See id.
98. See id.
99. See Stockford, supra note 12, at 830-31. Because of the complexity involved in property valuation, however, it may be difficult to predict precisely the tax benefits of a given easement. See id.
100. See id.
101. See, e.g., 26 U.S.C. § 2031 (a) (1994).
102. In countries like the United States that allow conservation easements, an owner may reduce the tax burden on heirs by transferring a conservation easement during their lifetime. After the owner's death, the estate's value will be lower, reflecting the lower value of the land.
103. Inheritance Tax Act of 1984, § 26.
104. Id.
105. See id.
106. See id. at §§ 125, 126.
107. See 26 U.S.C. § 2031(a) (1994).
108. See id.
109. See id.
110. See id. § 2031 (c).
111. See Estado do Sao Paulo, Lei Estadual No. 8,510, 29 de Dezembro de 1993, Art. 10 (VI) e Anexo; Estado do Parana, Lei Complementar No. 059/91, Decreto 974/91.
112. See id.
113. See Marcus Fernandez, "Imposto Verde" Sextuplica Renda de Cidades, FOLHA DE SAO PAULO, June 19, 1994.
114. See id.
115. See, e.g., ROBERT REPETTO, ET AL., GREEN FEES: HOW A TAX SHIFT CAN WORK FOR THE ENVIRONMENT AND THE ECONOMY (1992).
116. See id.
117. See FREDERICK R. ANDERSON, ET AL., ENVIRONMENTAL IMPROVEMENT THROUGH ECONOMIC INCENTIVES 7 (1977).
118. See, e.g., REPETTO ET AL., supra note 114.
119. See DIRK BRYANT ET AL., THE LAST FRONTIER FORESTS 5-6, 12 (1997).
120. See INDONESIAN FORUM FOR THE ENVIRONMENT (WALHI), SUSTAINABILITY AND ECONOMIC RENT IN THE INDONESIA FORESTRY SECTOR 31-32 (1991).
121. See id.
122. See id.
123. See id. at 32.
124. See id. Perhaps a better option for maximizing revenue and promoting efficiency might be an area utilization fee.
125. See Margot Cohen, Culture of Awareness, FAR EASTERN ECON. REV., Nov. 17, 1994 at 44.
126. At the same time, however, the U.S. encourages exploration and development of oil, gas, and certain minerals, through preferential tax treatment of certain producers' revenues. See CLARK & DOWNES, supra note 3, at 27-28.
127. See 26 U.S.C. § 4611(c)(2) (1994).
128. See id. §§ 4611, 9509.
129. See CLARK & DOWNES, supra note 3, at 20.
130. See Richard A. Westin, Understanding Environmental Taxes, 46 TAX LAW. 327, 353-54 (1993).
131. See id. See also Keith Schneider, Scars of Mining Endure as Repair Fund Dries Up, N.Y. TIMES, Dec. 4, 1993 at A9; Ted Williams, Strip-Mine Shell Game, AUDUBON, Nov. 1992 at 48.
132. See id. See also Keith Schneider, Scars of Mining Endure as Repair Fund Dries Up, N.Y. TIMES, Dec. 4, 1993 at A9; Ted Williams, Strip-Mine Shell Game, AUDUBON, Nov. 1992 at 48.
133. See, e.g., Schneider, supra note 130; Williams, supra note 130.
134. See Schneider, supra note 130.
135. See Libby Lester, Back to Nature, Again, SUNDAY AGE, Sept. 12, 1993, at Agenda § 9.
136. See generally Garrett Hardin, The Tragedy of the Commons, in VALUING THE EARTH: ECONOMICS, ECOLOGY, ETHICS 127-142 (Herman E. Daly & Kenneth N. Townsend eds., 1993).
137. See id.
138. See id.
139. See WORLD RESOURCES INSTITUTE, WORLD RESOURCES 1994-95 187-190 (1994).
140. See Whose Common Future? Reclaiming the Commons, THE ECOLOGIST 5-6 (1993).
141. See id. at 6-15.
142. See Jon H. Goldstein, The Prospects for Using Market Incentives to Conserve Biological Diversity, 21 ENVTL. L. 985, 993 (1991).
143. See id.
144. See id.
145. See id.
146. See id.
147. See id.
148. See CLARK & DOWNES, supra note 3, at 30.
149. See id.
150. See id.
151. SEE LAURA TLAIYE & DAN BILLER, SUCCESSFUL ENVIRONMENTAL INSTITUTIONS: LESSONS FROM COLOMBIA AND CURITIBA, BRAZIL 8-17(1994).
152. See id.
153. See id.
154. See generally NEW JERSEY: THE PINELANDS COMM'N, THE PINELANDS DEVELOPMENT CREDIT PROGRAM: TRANSFERRING RIGHTS IN NEW JERSEY'S PINELANDS (1996).
155. See id.
156. See id.
157. See id. at 9.
158. See Jon H. Goldstein & H. Theodore Heintz, Jr., Incentives for Private Conservation of Species and Habitat: An Economic Perspective, in BUILDING ECONOMIC INCENTIVES INTO THE ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT 51, 57 (Wendy E. Hudson ed. 1994).
159. See id. at 57.
160. Barbara & David Webber, Promoting Economic Incentives for Environmental protection in the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977: An Analysis of the Design and Implementation of Reclamation Performance Bonds, 25 NAT. RESOURCES. J. 389 (1985).
161. CLARK & DOWNES, supra note 3, at 58 (citing Robert Costanza and Laura Cornwell, The 4P Approach to Dealing With Scientific Uncertainty, ENV'T, Nov. 1992, at 12).
162. See id.
163. Such labeling schemes, whether voluntary or mandatory, could raise issues under the free trade rules of the World Trade Organization to the extent that they covered imported products. See generally GARY COOK ET AL., APPLYING TRADE RULES TO TIMBER ECOLABELING: A REVIEW OF TIMBER ECOLABELING AND WTO AGREEMENT ON TECHNICAL BARRIERS TO TRADE (1997).
164. See Walter V. Reid et al., A New Lease On Life, in BIODIVERSITY PROSPECTING: USING GENETIC RESOURCES FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT 6-7 (Walter V. Reid et al. eds. 1993).
165. See id.
166. See Calestous Juma, Policy Options for Scientific and Technological Capacity-Building, in BIODIVERSITY PROSPECTING: USING GENETIC RESOURCES FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT 210-11 (Walter V. Reid et al. eds. 1993).
167. See Madhav Gadgil & Fikret Berkes, Traditional Resource Management Systems, 18 RESOURCE MGMT. & OPTIMIZATION 127 (1991); Margery L. Oldfield & Janis B. Alcorn, Conservation of Traditional Agroecosystems, in BIODIVERSITY: CULTURE, CONSERVATION AND ECODEVELOPMENT 37 (Margery L. Oldfield & Janis B. Alcorn eds. 1991); see generally GARY NABHAN, ENSURING SEEDS: NATIVE AMERICAN AGRICULTURE AND WILD PLANT DEVELOPMENT (1989).
168. See Madhav Gadgil & Fikret Berkes, Traditional Resource Management Systems, 18 RESOURCE MGMT. & OPTIMIZATION 127 (1991); Margery L. Oldfield & Janis B. Alcorn, Conservation of Traditional Agroecosystems, in BIODIVERSITY: CULTURE, CONSERVATION AND ECODEVELOPMENT 37 (Margery L. Oldfield & Janis B. Alcorn eds. 1991); see generally GARY NABHAN, ENSURING SEEDS: NATIVE AMERICAN AGRICULTURE AND WILD PLANT DEVELOPMENT (1989).
169. See Madhav Gadgil & Fikret Berkes, Traditional Resource Management Systems, 18 RESOURCE MGMT. & OPTIMIZATION 127 (1991); Margery L. Oldfield & Janis B. Alcorn, Conservation of Traditional Agroecosystems, in BIODIVERSITY: CULTURE, CONSERVATION AND ECODEVELOPMENT 37 (Margery L. Oldfield & Janis B. Alcorn eds. 1991); see generally GARY NABHAN, ENSURING SEEDS: NATIVE AMERICAN AGRICULTURE AND WILD PLANT DEVELOPMENT (1989).
170. See Reid et al., supra note 162, at 15; Mark Plotkin, The Outlook for New Agricultural and Industrial Products from the Tropics, in BIODIVERSITY 106 (E.O. Wilson ed. 1988).
171. See David Downes, Global Trade, Local Ecologies, the Global Economy and the Biodiversity Convention, in BIODIVERSITY AND THE LAW: CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES 210 (William J. Snape ed. 1996); David Downes & Chris Wold, Biodiversity Prospecting: Rules of the Game, 44 BIOSCI. 381 (1994).
172. See David Downes, Global Trade, Local Ecologies, the Global Economy and the Biodiversity Convention, in BIODIVERSITY AND THE LAW: CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES 210 (William J. Snape ed. 1996); David Downes & Chris Wold, Biodiversity Prospecting: Rules of the Game, 44 BIOSCI. 381 (1994).
173. See Downes, supra note 167, at 210; Downes & Wold, supra note 167; see also Francesca Grifo & David Downes, Agreements for Pharmaceutical Research on Biodiversity: a Checklist of Issues and Principles, in VALUING LOCAL KNOWLEDGE: INDIGENOUS PEOPLES AND INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS 295 (Steven Brush & Doreen Stabinsky eds. 1996).
174. See Reid, supra note 162, at 1-5.
175. See generally Marianne Guérin-McManus et al., Bioprospecting in Practice: A Case Study of the Suriname ICBG Project and Benefits Sharing under the Convention on Biological Diversity (1998) (case study submitted to the Convention on Biological Diversity, Fourth Meeting of the Conference of the Parties, May, 1998, Bratislava, Slovakia, on file at Conservation International, Washington, D.C.).
176. See id.
177. See id.
178. See id.
179. See Jim McKinney, Mark Shaffer & Jeff Olson, Economic Incentives to Preserve Endangered Species Habitat and Biodiversity on Private Lands, in BUILDING ECONOMIC INCENTIVES INTO THE ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT 1, 11 (Wendy E. Hudson ed. 1994).
180. See Dennis J. Mahar, Deforestation in Brazil's Amazon Region: Magnitude, Rate and Causes, in ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT 94-98 (1994) (available from World Bank).
181. See DE KLEMM & SHINE, supra note 3, at 241.
182. See Coastal Barrier Resources Act, Pub. L. 97-348, § 11, 96 Stat. 1659 (1992) (amending National Flood Insurance Act of 1968, § 1321, codified at 42 U.S.C. § 4028); see also Elise Jones, The Coastal Barrier Resources Act: A Common Cents Approach to Coastal Protection, 21 Envtl L. 1015, 1028 (1991).
183. See Jones, supra note 177, at 1032-34.
184. See Jones, supra note 177, at 1030; CLARK & DOWNES, supra note 3, at 37.
185. See CLARK & DOWNES, supra note 3, at 37.
186. See 26 U.S.C. § 175 (1994).
187. See McKinney, Shaffer & Olson, supra note 174.
188. Id..
189. See Elli Louka, Cutting the Gordian Knot: Why International Environmental Law is Not Only About the Protection of the Environment, 10 TEMP. INT'L & COMP. L.J. 79, 82 (1996).