A Uniform Price Auction for Conservation Easements in the Canadian Prairies

This paper describes the application of a uniform price auction with a hidden reserve price in a field project aimed at discovering Canadian landowners’ willingness to accept compensation for placing conservation easements on their lands. This is the only project of this kind in Canada to date, and one of the few worldwide. The paper discusses the design of the auction, describes its implementation, and presents its results. The bids received in the auction conformed with known factors affecting opportunity costs and willingness to accept. The information from this auction was successful in guiding a long-term easement procurement program.