Farmland preservation is a joint effort by

non-governmental organization A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...

s and

local government Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-loca ...

s to set aside and protect examples of a region's

farmland Agricultural land is typically land ''devoted to'' agriculture, the systematic and controlled use of other forms of lifeparticularly the rearing of livestock and production of cropsto produce food for humans. It is generally synonymous with bot ...

for the use, education, and enjoyment of future generations. They are operated mostly at state and local levels by government agencies or private entities such as

land trust Land trusts are nonprofit organizations which own and manage land, and sometimes waters. There are three common types of land trust, distinguished from one another by the ways in which they are legally structured and by the purposes for which th ...

s and are designed to limit conversion of

agricultural land Agricultural land is typically land ''devoted to'' agriculture, the systematic and controlled use of other organism, forms of lifeparticularly the rearing of livestock and production of cropsto produce food for humans. It is generally synonymous ...

to other uses that otherwise might have been more financially attractive to the land owner. Every

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

provides tax relief through differential (preferential) assessment. Less common approaches include establishing agricultural districts, using

zoning Zoning is a method of urban planning in which a municipality or other tier of government divides land into areas called zones, each of which has a set of regulations for new development that differs from other zones. Zones may be defined for a si ...

to protect agricultural land,See, for example,

Montgomery County, Maryland Agricultural Reserve The Agricultural Reserve is a designated land use zone in Montgomery County, Maryland. The zone was created in 1980 by the Montgomery County Council to preserve farm land and rural space in the northwestern part of the county. The farmland prote ...

. purchasing development rights, and

transferable development rights Transferable development rights (TDR) is a method by which developers can purchase the development rights of certain parcels within a designated "sending district" and transfer the rights to another "receiving district" to increase the density of t ...

. It is often a part of

regional planning Regional planning deals with the efficient placement of land-use activities, infrastructure, and settlement growth across a larger area of land than an individual city or town. Regional planning is related to urban planning as it relates land ...

and national

historic preservation Historic preservation (US), built heritage preservation or built heritage conservation (UK), is an endeavor that seeks to preserve, conserve and protect buildings, objects, landscapes or other artifacts of historical significance. It is a philos ...

History

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

passed the Farmland Assessment Act of 1964 to mitigate the loss of farmland to rapid suburban development through the use of favorable tax assessments. But by the late 1970s, the value of farmland had outstripped the tax benefits of the act, so the state purchased

deed In common law, a deed is any legal instrument in writing which passes, affirms or confirms an interest, right, or property and that is signed, attested, delivered, and in some jurisdictions, sealed. It is commonly associated with transferring ...

restrictions on farms through the Agriculture Retention and Development Act of 1981. Regional efforts in

Monmouth County, New Jersey Monmouth County () is a county located on the coast of central New Jersey. The county is part of the New York metropolitan area and is situated along the northern half of the Jersey Shore. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the county's population w ...

include the

Navesink Highlands The Navesink Highlands, sometimes referred to as the Highlands of Navesink and also known as the Atlantic Highlands, is a range of low hills and upland areas located along the United States Atlantic coast in New Jersey. The hills of the Highlands r ...

Greenway, a project of the Monmouth County Farmland Preservation Program, which, along with the Monmouth Conservation Foundation, purchased the development rights of the Holly Crest Farm in Middletown in September 2008 for US $2.5 million. Over 20 percent of county farmlands and open spaces are permanently preserved.

American Farmland Trust American Farmland Trust is a nonprofit organization in the United States with a mission to protect farmland, promote environmentally sound farming practices, and keep farmers on the land. AFT is staffed by farmers, policy experts, researchers and ...

was established in 1980 to preserve farmland and promote sustainable farming practices. The Genesee Valley Conservancy was founded in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

in 1990.

Management of protected farmland

Conservation easement In the United States, a conservation easement (also called conservation covenant, conservation restriction or conservation servitude) is a power invested in a qualified private land conservation organization (often called a "land trust") or gove ...

is one approach used to manage protected farms. A

program offers landowners financial incentives or bonuses for the conservation and maintenance of agricultural land. Land developers can purchase the development rights of certain properties within a designated "sending district" and transfer the rights to another "receiving district" to increase the density of their new development. A widely-noted example of a sending district is the

Partial list of preserved farms

Elsing Green Elsing Green Plantation, a National Historic Landmark and wildlife refuge, rests upon nearly along the Pamunkey River in King William County, Virginia, a rural county on the western end of the state's middle peninsula, approximately northeast ...

Hampton National Historic Site Hampton National Historic Site, in the Hampton area north of Towson, Baltimore County, Maryland, USA, preserves a remnant of a vast 18th-century estate, including a Georgian manor house, gardens, grounds, and the original stone slave quarters. Th ...

Oatlands Plantation Oatlands Historic House and Gardens (formerly Oatlands Plantation) is an estate located in Leesburg, Virginia. Oatlands is operated by the National Trust for Historic Preservation and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a ...

References

* {{Refend Human geography Land use Urban planning

History

Management of protected farmland

Partial list of preserved farms

See also

References