University of Oregon. Ecosystem Workforce Program2016-01-282016-01-282013https://hdl.handle.net/1794/195872 pagesLarge, intact landscapes are necessary to maintain and enhance ecosystem services. Across the West, the break-up of working landscapes into “ranchettes” has resulted in the loss of fish and wildlife habitat, water quality, and other ecosystem services. In some landscapes, conservation easements have prevented this kind of development through the acquisition of development rights and deed restrictions specifying allowable land use activities. Although easements have protected numerous individual properties and have helped landowners address financial challenges, there is a growing perception that a lack of coordinated action at scale can limit their ecological effectiveness. Two examples of a more coordinated approach to protecting and restoring land across landscapes with conservation easements are unfolding in the Blackfoot Watershed of western Montana and the Upper Salmon River Basin of north central Idaho. In both of these places, diverse groups are convening to facilitate the strategic use of easements while also maintaining agricultural and forestry land uses.en-USCreative Commons BY-NC-ND 4.0-USOther