Working Lands Preservation: Tools and Incentives

Gerry CohnSoutheast Regional Office

Graham, NC

American Farmland Trust

• National non-profit organization, founded in 1980. 50,000 members nationwide

• Protecting working lands, planning for agriculture, and keeping the land healthy

• Education, policy advocacy, and land projects

• Farm Bill

Principles for improving working land conservation

• Increased coordination and simplification of local, state, and national working lands conservation programs will make them more “customer friendly” and effective

Principles for improving working land conservation

• Elected officials and government agencies must do a better job of building public support for working lands conservation if the programs are to be improved and expanded

Principles for improving working lands conservation

• Government supported working lands conservation programs should demonstrate they produce valuable and measurable “environmental goods” or “conservation commodities.”

Principles for improving working lands conservation

• Producing more benefits from working lands conservation will require significantly greater funding.

LOCALMaking the Case for Agriculture

Economic Natural resource protection Wildlife habitat Rural heritage Fiscal

LOCAL

Planning for Agriculture:

• Land use policies

• Economic development programs

FARMING IS A BUSINESS!!

Land Use Policy: Comprehensive Plans

• Agriculture’s role in the county

• Existing and planned water and sewer

• Locating public facilities: schools, industrial parks

• Setbacks and regulations for farm-based businesses

• Outreach to the farming community

• Planning for ag viability

• Individual business and estate plans

• Creating alternative products and markets

• Agri-tourism/local promotion

• PACE programs

Agricultural Economic Development

• Broad based partnership

• Active participation in Comp Plan Update

• Cotton Mill Farmers Market

• Farmers Fresh Food Network

• SPLOST referendum (3M for farmland)

• Georgia Agricultural Land Trust

Carroll County

New York Watershed Agricultural Program

• Developed as an alternative to a costly EPA-mandated filtration system

• Administered by the non-profit Watershed Agricultural Council

• Includes both financial incentives to implement best management practices as well as the purchase of agricultural conservation easements

REGIONAL

What’s Happening

Around the Southeast

Kentucky

Statewide PACE – 15M Fayette County PDR – 15M Agricultural Development Fund Soil Erosion and Water Quality Cost-Share

Virginia

• State Office of Farmland Preservation

• Model PDR program guidelines

• Ag Enterprise Districts: cost-share

• Local Ag Economic Development Coordinators

North Carolina

• Voluntary Agricultural Districts

• NC Farm Transition Network

• Working Lands and Farmland Preservation Trust Fund

NATIONAL

• Farmland Protection

• Farm Bill

NATIONAL

Farmland Protection• Local PACE: 55 programs, 763M, 2200 farms• State PACE: 27 programs, 2B, 8750 farms• Farm and Ranchland Protection Program (FRPP)• Conservation Easement Tax Law: Landowner deduction

increase from 30 to 50% of income (100% for farmers); can be spread over 16 years

Sample State PACE Program Activity (2006)

State Acres Easements $ Spent (M)

Pennsylvania 318,350 2,783 513.5

Colorado 244,584 160 88.3

Vermont 113,000 389 45.0

California 32,727 100 44.2

Delaware 79,955 442 88.7

New market development Energy Research, pest management, etc. Rural development Stewardship

NATIONAL:Farm Bill Reform:

Unmet Needs of Agriculture

A New Framework forU.S. Farm Policy

Four Major Policy Proposals

Green Payments Revenue Protection Program Cooperative Conservation Program Farm and Ranch Profitability Grants

AFT’s Agenda 2007

• Gerry Cohn: 336-221-0707

• gcohn@farmland.org

• Technical info: 800-370-4879

• http://www.farmland.org