What were the results of the grant program with The Nature Conservancy – California?

The Nature Conservancy grant program supported an innovative remote monitoring assessment program for land trusts. Over a two-year period beginning in December 2020, the Land Trust Alliance regranted funds to land trusts of varying sizes and geographies to implement remote imaging technology and to compare the time and costs of remote and in-person monitoring. Alliance staff collaborated with colleagues at the Nature Conservancy to provide technical support to grantees and organize opportunities for sharing knowledge. Project grantees were asked to track the costs associated with remote and in-person monitoring, yielding more than 650 points of comparison.

Overall, land trusts of all sizes found remote imaging technology beneficial for monitoring their preserves easements and fee-owned properties. Compared to in-person monitoring, remote monitoring provided more thorough coverage, took less time, and was 15% less expensive on average for the year 2021.

With a significant reduction in prices at the end of 2021, the cost difference increased further. The average annual cost per property for each method is shown below.

While not every organization saved money, the majority of grantees reported that they will likely continue to use remote monitoring because they have seen both time and cost savings and gained increased confidence in their monitoring program.

For more, see Is it expensive? in the Frequently Asked Questions.