"We are talking significant land holdings.
But Israel has been doing just that for the last decade, by handing over significant land and authority.
Haile Selassie showed himself unable to implement significant land reform, and, as a result, progressives and students opposed the regime.
Many have built up significant land holdings, in some cases the equivalent of ten years-worth of building.
The money, $10 million in a community preservation fund to buy environmentally significant land from willing sellers, is itself a measure of development in the town.
The state of Maine and private paper companies have significant land holdings, keeping much of the landscape unpaved and uninhabited, at least for the moment.
The state has acquired 215 acres of environmentally significant land in the Croton watershed for $2.1 million under the New York City Watershed Agreement.
"The company has significant land under its control and there will be investment opportunities to exploit on the estate," Mr. Carrafiell said.
Regular sales of property leases provide it with cash, and significant land redevelopments often require a premium to be paid to modify the lease.
Yet while Turner is working on a remarkable 1.7 million acres, his commitment to conservation and the resulting benefits for people and wildlife must not be viewed as the exclusive domain of those with significant land holdings.
"They have options to purchase additional significant land," said Alfred Clise, the chairman and chief executive of Clise Properties, "and we are hoping and expecting that that will happen".
