Let's see if I can clarify some terminology without getting too much into "legalese" and answer your question.
I welcome legal experts to weight in.
You write:
"I would find it very odd if TATF were allowed to mortgage the land our trees are on."
As far I know, no one owning TATF trees has a registered title with the government Costa Rica indicating any asset ownership.
If you own trees from TATF what you have is an Tree Order Form defined and considered an "agreement" not a contract. You also have a tree certificate issued by the corporation, that clearly specifies that you have an agreement, not a contract.
Now if you want to know the legality of the issue.
An "agreement" is an arrangement between the parties which may or may not contain the necessary elements to be enforceable before a court of law.
In Simple Words:
A Contract is enforceable by law while an Agreement is not enforceable by law.
Now, I kick myself, because I spend a couple of bucks getting the the "agreement" reviewed, I was travelling and I did not pay enough attention. Then, it became too late to do anything meaningful.
Bottom line.
It is easy and possible for TATF to sell the land, use the land as collateral with trees, or bonded.
Because, the trees are part of TATF's title of ownership of the land and is an intrinsic part of the land asset, those trees are under agreed terms to perform after an specific amount of time, in this case a maximum of 25 years.
Clearly, as long as you can legally enforce your agreement.
