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.. . . '''''0 ':j UJt.oL, -4- . 4. The various possibilities of automatic termination of the easement rights, without notice and without compensation. 5. The various administrative difficulties which result from split ownership. Appurtenant easements are the most common form of easements and the requirement of a dominant tenement is the principal legal characteristic of an appurtenant easement. If there is no dominant tenement--and no overall statutory scheme spelling out the nature of the new right--legal trouble may ensue. If recreation easements are required on land isolated from agency land holdings must normally be either easements in gross or some wholly new form of legal right and interest. If such easements are considered as easements in gross, in the traditional form--without special statutory definition--several types of legal problems may arise. Easements in gross are generally regarded as rather limited and weak form of legal interest in land. Major questions arise on their assignability and on the possi- bility of their termination. If easement restrictions are assignable, the problem is how to bind subsequent purchasers of the fee to respect the rights under the easement. A statute authorizing the acquisition of such easements should specifically require that they be recorded. The subject of possible termination of the easement should be thor- oughly studied. In order to eliminate any administrative difficulties in enforoemElnt, the respective rights should be clearly defined. Enabling Legislation: Guide lines for enabling legislation. In so far as possible the major problem should be worked out at the period of statutory drafting, rather than being left to eventual resolution by the parties in litigation. The statute should set forth at length a'list of the major rights to use land which will be involved. The statute should authorize three different and alternative methods of splitting up the various rights as between public and private ownership: 1. Conveyance of certain stated rights by the private owner to a public agency, with the private owner retaining the fee; i.e., the typical situation of public acquisition of an "easement". 2. Publio acquisition of the fee and lease-back to a private owner of oertain stated rights over the land or, alternatively, public issuance of a special use permit for the same purpose. 3. Public acquisition of the fee and reconveyance to the former private owner of a new type of legal interest in land, con- sisting of whatever rights are specifically reconveyed. This interest should specifically be made assignable and devisable; i.e., it can both be sold and inherited. The Government should hold its rights as a separate entity and not as a trustee for the population at large. Provision should be made for carry- ing out any of these arrangements by gift, purchase, or oondemnation, as appropriate. It would be preferable not to use the word "easement" in