N.M. Admin. Code § 3.13.20.13

Current through Register Vol. 36, No. 1, January 14, 2025

Section 3.13.20.13 - FACTORS IN DETERMINING SUITABILITY FOR CERTIFICATION OF ELIGIBILITY

A. The donation shall meet the following three criteria for the secretary to consider the donation for certification eligibility:

(1) the land or interest in land fits one or more of the descriptions of purposes in Subsection D of 3.13.20.7 NMAC;

(2) the recipient is a public or private conservation agency with the ability and commitment to monitor and ensure the grantor's compliance with the conservation easement or provide stewardship of the fee land, as applicable; and

(3) the donation provides for the protection in perpetuity of the conservation or preservation purposes for which the applicant donated the land or interest in land through a conservation easement.

B. In determining an application's suitability for certification of eligibility, the secretary considers several factors including the following:

(1) property size;

(2) property condition or potential;

(3) presence of significant natural or cultural resources;

(4) property's location relative to other lands protected for conservation or preservation purposes;

(5) current and future management and use;

(6) contribution to local, regional or state conservation or preservation objectives;

(7) terms of the conservation easement or deed;

(8) qualifications and stewardship capacity of the public or private conservation agency holding the fee or conservation easement; and

(9) other factors affecting the property's long-term protection and viability.

C. The secretary also considers the criteria listed in the following table in determining whether the resources or areas contained in the donation are significant or important: These criteria relate to the property's overall condition and viability as well as the compatibility of future management and uses and surrounding land uses for maintenance of conservation values.

Ranking	Site Condition	Development	Uses	Surroundings	Stewardship or Monitoring
Favorable	Site is of uniformly good condition and sufficient size to maintain the conservation or preservation purposes, assuming other favorable factors such as good potential for restoration if needed	Additional development of the property is specifically prohibited or additional development that is allowed is consistent with the conservation or preservation purposes	Allowed uses of the property are consistent with the conservation or preservation purposes	Surrounding land uses are entirely compatible with site conservation or preservation purposes, or site serves as a connection between other conservation lands or provides significant or important open space	If a fee donation, the recipient has sufficient resources as well as a formal plan to provide stewardship for the conservation or preservation purposes. If a less-than-fee donation the recipient has sufficient resources to monitor and ensure the grantor's compliance with the conservation's easement's terms.
Marginal	Site is of minimum size and condition to maintain the conservation or preservation purposes, assuming other favorable factors	Additional development allowed that may impair the conservation or preservation purposes	Allowed uses of the property may be incompatible for long-term maintenance of the conservation or preservation purposes	Surrounding lands uses are not consistent with site conservation or preservation purposes, and site does not serve as a connection between other conservation lands or provide significant or important open space, but surrounding land uses do not seriously compromise site integrity	If a fee donation, the recipient has no formal plan and marginal capacity to provide stewardship of the conservation or preservation purposes. If a less-than-fee donation, the recipient has marginal resources to monitor and ensure the grantor's compliance with the conservation's easement's terms.
Unfavorable	Maintenance of conservation or preservation values is severely compromised by the site's size, configuration, location or condition	Additional development allowed that is inconsistent with the conservation or preservation purposes	Allowed uses are clearly incompatible with the long-term maintenance of the conservation or preservation purposes	Surrounding land uses are clearly incompatible with site conservation or preservation and threaten site integrity and the site does not serve as a connection between other conservation lands or provide significant or important open space	If a fee donation, the recipient has no plan or resources to provide stewardship of the conservation or preservation purposes. If a less-than-fee donation, the recipient has no or limited resources to monitor and ensure the grantor's compliance with the conservation's easement's terms.

D. The secretary evaluates each application in the context of the property's unique geographic setting and characteristics, but the secretary will not apply rigid standards relating to tract size or other factors. Instead, the secretary evaluates the donation's overall contribution to the indicated conservation or preservation purpose as well as the probability the purposes will be supported in perpetuity.

N.M. Admin. Code § 3.13.20.13

3.13.20.13 NMAC - N, 6-16-2008, Amended by New Mexico Register, Volume XXXV, Issue 02, January 30, 2024, eff. 1/30/2024