Managing Conservation Easements in Perpetuity - Environmental ...

CLC: Record-keeping Policy
• Inspection reports
• Documentation on donor pledges and list of contributors
• Acquisition-related correspondence
► Tradelands Records:
• Pledge letters and/or related documents
• Meeting minutes containing Board approval for project
• Warranty deeds, loan documents
• Survey maps
• Environmental assessments
• Title report and exceptions
• Closing documents and copy of all checks written at closing
• Tax filings, Form 8283, Form 8282 (if applicable)
• Property tax receipts
• Appraisals, price documentation
• Correspondence with land donor and land purchaser
• Sales contracts
• Conservation easement documentation, if applicable
Record Storage: Critical Records shall be kept off-premises in an archival storage facility that
is preferably temperature/humidity controlled and fireproof in order to avoid deterioration of the
documents, prevent inadvertent loss of the records due to fire, flood, storm or other hazards that
may happen to CLC’s office and avoid tampering with the records, to the greatest extent
possible. CLC staff shall use its discretion to determine which, if any, of CLC’s other records
should also be archived off-site to prevent risk of loss or tampering. Such records shall be kept
in paper form, but may be archived or otherwise electronically stored in the future.
For paper records, staff shall determine appropriate means to store such records with their
longevity in mind (such as using acid free paper, archival quality film, archival plastic sleeves,
restricting light, addressing humidity levels in storage areas, etc.), and shall revisit alternative
types of storage methods periodically to ensure staff has chosen the best available methods of
preserving paper records. In addition, staff shall ensure that the physical methods of storing
archived documents preserves those documents from damage to the greatest extent practicable
(as, for example, keeping aerial photos flat rather than rolling them up, storing maps in map
boxes rather than in file drawers).
Should other methods of record-keeping be adopted in addition to, or in place of, paper form,
CLC shall either store the technology needed, or commit to updating the technology periodically,
to ensure such records are accessible in perpetuity.
Storage of Non-Critical Records: Due to limited storage space in CLC’s office, the
organization’s non-critical records may also be stored off-site in the archival storage facility.
Storage of such records will not be subject to the standards contained in this Record-Keeping
Policy. Non-critical records may include, but are not limited to, CLC’s consulting work and
CLC Record-Keeping Policy; Adopted 04/30/05 _________________________________________________5 of 7
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Managing Conservation Easements in Perpetuity