“I live in Denver. I drink tap water from my kitchen sink, hike close to home when I can, worry about wildfire smoke every summer, and try, like many families, to keep up with the rising cost of living. I don’t own land. I don’t ranch. I don’t farm.
“And yet one of the most important public investments shaping my daily life is something most Denverites rarely think about: conservation easements on private land across Colorado.
“Conservation easements are voluntary agreements that permanently protect land from development while keeping it in private ownership. They’re often associated with rural places, wide-open ranches, mountain valleys, or wildlife habitat far from the city. But the truth is, conservation easements quietly deliver real, everyday benefits to people living in Denver and other Front Range communities.”
Published on March 18, this opinion piece “Why Denver should care about conservation easements — even if you’ve never set foot on a ranch” by Jason Swann highlights the importance of conservation easements to all Coloradans. Jason Swann is the conservation finance director at the Trust for Public Land, leading efforts to expand outdoor access and scale sustainable conservation funding across the western U.S.
Read more at Colorado Politics: https://www.coloradopolitics.com/2026/03/18/why-denver-should-care-about-conservation-easements-even-if-youve-never-set-foot-on-a-ranch-opinion/
