To facilitate development of the Environmental Impact Statement which must accompany the Section 10 multi-species conservation proposal, a series of issue papers were prepared. In Pima County, ranching is uniquely able to preserve the integrity of vast tracts of connected and unfragmented open space and wildlife habitat. This study reviews the effect of five alternative permit strategies on the County's ability to preserve unfragmented landscapes through conserving ranch lands.

Conservation easements are becoming an important mechanism in Pima County for dealing with matters such as the establishment of mitigation banks and the negotiation of conservation commitments with federal environmental regulatory agencies. This tool will also assist in the implementation of the Ranch Conservation Element of the SDCP. Includes the verbatim proceedings of a workshop on conservation held on August 18, 2001.