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Glossary

Sales Agreement
  1. The document expressing the final terms of the purchase and sale, signed by all of the sellers and buyers. [Source: www.sharingstewardship.org]
Servitude
  1. An umbrella term for all types of promises that are binding on future landowners as well as the landowner making the promises. Both easements and restrictive covenants are included within this single concept. Servitudes create rights and obligations that run with the land. Running with the land means that the right or obligation passes automatically to successive owners or occupiers of the land or the interest in land with which the right or obligation runs. Rights and obligations that run with the land are useful because they create land-use arrangements that remain intact despite changes in ownership of the land. Servitudes permit the creation of neighborhoods restricted to particular uses, providing a private alternative to zoning; they permit property to be used as a basis for financing infrastructure, providing a private alternative to taxation; and they permit the creation of stable arrangements for shared use of land, providing an alternative to acquisition of fee-simple interests for transportation corridors and natural-resource exploitation. Although these are the most common uses of servitudes, they are not exclusive. Servitudes may be used for any purpose that is not illegal or against public policy. Servitudes are widely used in land development because they can be individually tailored to meet the needs of particular projects. They are widely used for roads, utilities, pipelines, and natural-resource exploitation because they are less expensive than acquisition in fee.
Severance Tax
  1. A tax imposed on the extraction of natural resources, such as oil, coal, or gas. Also referred to as an extraction tax.
Silviculture
  1. The care and culture of forests to control the establishment, growth, composition, and quality of forest vegetation for a diverse variety of goals, such as management of wildlife habitat and timbering on a sustainable basis.
Smart Growth
  1. Smart growth is an urban planning and transportation theory that concentrates growth in the center of a city to avoid urban sprawl and advocates compact, transit-oriented, walkable, bicycle-friendly land use, including neighborhood schools, complete streets, and mixed-use development with a range of housing choices. Smart growth values long-range, regional considerations of sustainability over a short-term focus. Its goals are to achieve a unique sense of community and place; expand the range of transportation, employment, and housing choices; equitably distribute the costs and benefits of development; preserve and enhance natural and cultural resources; and promote public health. [Source: Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smart_growth]
Stakeholder
  1. Somebody who has a "stake" or interest in a public policy, programm or, in some uses of the term, a corporation's activities. [Source: Organisation for Economic and Co-Operation Develoipment, Sustainable Development's Glossary: http://www.oecd.org]
Standing
  1. Standing is the ability of a party to bring a lawsuit in court based upon their stake in the outcome. A party seeking to demonstrate standing must be able to show the court sufficient connection to and harm from the law or action challenged. Otherwise, the court will rule that you "lack standing" to bring the suit and dismiss your case. [Source: http://definitions.uslegal.com/s/standing/ on 9/22/13]
Statement of Compliance
  1. A statement prepared by the holder for a landowner who is selling easment property. The statement reviews the condition of th eproperty as of the holder's most recent inspection. Also called a "compliance certificate" or "estoppel certificate". [Source: Elizabeth Byers and Karin Marchetti Ponti, The Conservation Easement Handbook, Published by the Trust for Public Land and the Land Trust Alliance, 2005.]
Stewardship
  1. The administration of land and associated resources in a manner that enables their passing on to future generations in a healthy condition. [source: DCNR State Forestry Resource Management Plan, Glossary of Terms: http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/forestry/sfrmp/glossary.htm]
  2. Active care and sustainable use of private lands, based on a moral commitment to conservation. It may be as simple as leaving a native shrub standing in your yard, to provide a natural food source for wildlife such as migrating birds, or it may be as grand as participating in a stream restoration project and taking a stewardship pledge. [Source: Greenways Land Trust, Glossary: http://www.greenwaystrust.ca/glossary/glossary.php]
Stewardship Endowment
  1. Money given to the land trust or agency, usually by the landowner, to cover the future costs of the stewardship of land. [Source: Glossary of Land Conservation Terms and Techniques, Triangle Land Conservancy: http://www.tlc-nc.org/landowner/glossary.shtml]
Stewardship Fund
  1. A monetary fund established to support land management activities on protected property. Stewardship funds may be established for individual protected properties though are more commonly created by pooling stewardship contributions in a single account for easy administration and investment. Organizational policies on stewardship fund expenditures and investments generally emphasize protection of the principal, as well as identify when and under what circumstances withdrawals from the fund are allowed. [Source: www.sharingstewardship.org]
Stormwater Runoff
  1. Water originating from a storm which becomes polluted once it is earthbound. There are a wide sources of pollutants including driveways, streets, parking lots, construction sites, agricultural fields, lawns, pet wastes, failing sewer systems, leaking septic tanks, and illicit discharges such as dumping waste motor oil. [Source: City of Ocean Springs, MS, What is Stormwater Runoff Pollution?: http://www.oceansprings.org/Ocean%20Springs%20sw%20facts%20and%20tips%20for%20website.htm]
stream riffle
  1. A shallow area where water passes over rocks or other structures, creating turbulence or small disturbances in the flow of water. Because the disturbances increase the amount of dissolved oxygen, and there are many small spaces in the rocks and other structures, riffles provide good habitat for macroinvertebrates.
Subsidence
  1. Subsidence is the gradual settling or sudden sinking of the Earth’s surface.
Suburban Sprawl
  1. The spreading of a city and its suburbs over rural land at the fringe of an urban area. It is often characterized by low population densities, a lack of public transportation options and not being pedestrian friendly. Sprawl is often seen as poorly planned development that threatens our environment, our health, and our quality of life in numerous ways. It is also referred to as urban sprawl. [sources: Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_sprawl) & and Sierra Club (http://www.sierraclub.org/sprawl)]
Survey
  1. A document that indicates the boundary lines and dimensions of a protected property, or a portion of it, and the location of buildings or other improvements on or near the protected property. Any survey should be prepared by a licensed surveyor. The survey often forms the basis for the legal description in a deed or other instrument of conveyance. [Source: www.sharingstewardship.org]
Sustainable Development
  1. A philosophy of resources use and management intended to meet society's present needs without compromising the resources for future generations. [source: Glossary of Conservation Terms, Ridge and Valley Conservancy, Inc., http://www.rvclandtrust.org]
Sustainable Forest Management
  1. The attainment of balance—balance between society's increasing demands for forest products and other benefits, and the preservation of forest health and diversity. [source: American Hardwood Export Council, Sustainable Forest Management: http://www.ahec-europe.org/sustainability/sustainable-forest-management.html]