Two landowners in Upstate South Carolina have placed 256 acres of generational farmland into binding conservation easements, permanently barring residential subdivisions and industrial development across Pickens and Greenville counties.
Pressure had mounted for years. Suburban sprawl rapidly swallowed adjacent agricultural parcels, bringing heavy commuter traffic directly to the property lines. Land trust non-profit Upstate Forever finalized the agreements, which legally bind current and future titleholders to strict anti-development covenants while leaving private ownership intact. The dual filings push the organization’s conservation footprint past 40,000 acres across 10 South Carolina counties.
In Pickens County, Alice Smith placed Duck Haven—a 146-acre family estate purchased by her grandparents in the 1940s—under deed restrictions that run directly to the banks of the Saluda River. The move fulfilled a personal pledge.
"I made a promise to my mother that I would find a way to keep the land together," Smith said, turning down commercial bids to ensure the rolling pastures remain unbroken.
Forty miles to the east in Greenville County, Ed Lomas enacted identical legal barriers over Moore Farm, a 110-acre cattle operation held by his family for more than a century near Horsepen Creek. Originally cultivated for cotton before transitioning to livestock during the 1950s, the farm recently found itself flanked by new housing subdivisions. The process to secure the easement took 18 months of legal structuring.
"Twenty years ago, you would wait for cars to come by maybe every few minutes," Lomas said. "Now it’s a constant stream, especially first thing in the morning."
Lomas moved forward after watching neighboring families fracture under estate disputes and property tax burdens. "I know it’ll be safe and the kids will not be able to be pressured into selling it as a development," Lomas said.
| Property | County | Acreage | Historical Use | Governing Land Trust | Conservation Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Duck Haven (Smith Family) | Pickens County | 146 Acres | Farmland / Saluda River basin | Upstate Forever | Permanent Conservation Easement |
| Moore Farm (Lomas Family) | Greenville County | 110 Acres | Cotton (pre-1950s) / Cattle | Upstate Forever | Permanent Conservation Easement |
Conservation easements function as legal covenants filed in local county deed registries, transferring development rights to a certified land trust without transferring physical ownership of the soil. Upstate Forever acts as the legal grantor and perpetual steward, empowered to audit the properties and take court action if future owners violate the pact.
"The landowner is the grantor; they grant those restrictions to Upstate Forever," said Scott Park of Upstate Forever. "We are the forever steward, so we’re almost a partner in the pocket of that landowner now for as long as that landowner owns that piece of property."
Financial structures established by the South Carolina Farm Bureau and the Internal Revenue Service offset the lost commercial value of the land. Appraisers calculate the dollar variance between the property's unencumbered development value and its post-easement agricultural valuation. The difference qualifies as a non-cash charitable donation, permitting landowners to claim federal income tax deductions over a 15-year schedule alongside South Carolina state tax credits capped at $250 per acre.
Upstate Forever land stewards will now conduct baseline ecological audits across both parcels, formalizing annual inspection schedules to monitor boundary integrity through the next tax cycle.