The document discusses transfer of development rights (TDR) programs, which allow landowners in designated "sending areas" to sever and sell development rights to developers in "receiving areas" in exchange for permanently protecting their land. It provides examples of successful TDR programs that have preserved hundreds of thousands of acres, including in Montgomery County, MD, King County, WA, and New Jersey's Pinelands. It also discusses using TDR programs to fund the restoration of natural and historic areas.