Hisey: Conservation Easement Policy in Canada
In Provincial Diffusion, National Acceptance: The Transfer of Conservation Easement Policy in Canada, author Forrest Hisey (Ecology & Environmental Studies, Florida Gulf Coast University) surveys the evolution of conservation easement (CE) legislation in Canada to understand the state of CE policy as well as policy diffusion methods leading to this development.
Conservation easements are a private land conservation tool that operate through legally binding agreements between private property owners and the easement holder. These easement holders may include non-governmental or governmental organizations who can then impose limitations on development they deem harmful to promote environmental conservation on the designated property. This means of conservation is receiving particular attention in Canada as the national government seeks to implement its 30-by-30 pledge which promises to conserve 30 percent of Canada’s land and water by 2030. Hisey explores the diffusion of CE policy across Canada’s provinces through various policy adoption mechanisms.
The methods of policy adoption Hisey identified included learning, which is the changing of beliefs among political actors after learning new information, and imitation or mimicry, which involves the adoption of foreign models of prior policy. He notes that Canadian provinces often look to United States policy and policy from larger Canadian provinces, like Ontario, due to extensive political similarities. Through a survey of all 13 Canadian provinces, Hisey broke down what CE legislation looked like by evaluating the language of the legislation, debates around the legislation, and interviews with individuals with personal knowledge of the legislation. This survey revealed that many provinces borrowed from US legislation and legislation from Ontario. Many were also heavily influenced by advocacy from environmental non-governmental organizations (eNGOs). The Yukon was the only jurisdiction to also acknowledge consultation with Indigenous nations. Ultimately, Hisey identified three phases of development of CE legislation beginning in 1988 and ending in 2002, resulting in an “uneven tapestry” of CE legislation across Canadian provinces.
This review of CE legislation across Canadian provinces reflects policy diffusion through a variety of mechanisms with the strongest influence coming from eNGOs who were most invested in promoting the legislation. Hisey further notes that unique principles of federalism in Canada provide future opportunities for research into conservation policy diffusion specifically in the Canadian context.
