WASHINGTON, Dec. 1 Land protected by non-profit trusts and conservation groups grew by 54 percent across the United States, a report shows.In its report, the Land Trust Alliance found that land protected by by such trusts grew by 13 million acres between 2000 and 2005.We think the amount of acreage will continue to increase every year, James Wyerman, the Washington-based organization ' s communications director, said in the Los Angles Times Friday. Every year we have done this, we see not just some growth, but exponential growth.The trend is spurred by passage of conservation bond funds, federal tax incentives and the desire to preserve open space in the face of development, Wyerman said.Trusts usually operate one of three ways:-- They acquire land and manage it.-- They purchase conservation easements, leaving the land in private hands but barring development in the future.-- They buy land and sell it to a government agency to mange it.In the alliance survey, the largest increase was in acreage placed under easements.Land trusts are protecting land close to home, said alliance President Rand Wentworth. People are hungry for a place to walk or bike or hike.Copyright 2006 by UPI
