Conservation of animal and plant resources on non-federal lands is important because many species rely heavily – or even entirely – on such lands. However, due to concern about potential land use restrictions that could occur if a species becomes listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), some property owners have been reluctant to engage in conservation activities that encourage use of their land or water by such species. A Candidate Conservation Agreement with Assurances (CCAA) addresses this concern by providing incentives for non-federal property owners to engage in voluntary conservation activities that provides a net conservation benefit to the species.

More specifically, a CCAA provides participating property owners with a permit containing assurances that if they engage in certain conservation actions for species included in the agreement, they will not be required to implement additional conservation measures beyond those in the CCAA. If the species is listed, additional land, water, or resource use limitations will not be imposed on them, unless they consent to such changes.

Visit the website for more information about CCAA's, how they help a species, what can be included in the agreements, how they are made and more. In addition to the website, use this factsheet for further information.