LandTrusts

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**//Crop- and Forestland Preservation and Conservation//** :: Present Use Value :: Voluntary Agricultural Districts :: Conservation Easements :: Farmland Protection Plans & Programs ======

= Crop- and Forestland Conservation and Preservation =

This report focuses on state-sponsored conservation programs available to regional farmers but federal programs are also available: [|FarmlandConservationPrograms.xlsx]. Many crop- and forestland farms participate in state and federal programs simultaneously. **__Conservation Easements (Land Trusts)__**

The most traditional tool for conserving private land, a “conservation easement,” is a legal agreement between a landowner and a land trust or government agency that permanently limits uses of the land in order to protect its conservation values. It allows landowners to continue to own and use their land, and they can sell it or pass it on to heirs. A permanent conservation easement provides assurance that the land will be available for farm and/or forest (working lands) use. Currently, one land trust (Triangle Land Conservancy), two Soil and Water Conservation Districts (Durham and Orange), and two counties (Durham and Orange) hold working lands conservation easements. Several more soil & water conservation districts and counties are considering this option. We report the number of acres of crop- and woodland enrolled in conservation easements.


 * Why is this important?**

The primary function of working lands conservation easements is to encourage the preservation and protection of farmland and forestland from non-farm development, thus assuring that these resources are available for local production while potentially providing other benefits, such as water quality, air quality, wildlife habitat, and scenery to the community and its economy.

Source: Triangle Land Conservancy. ** Farms ** || ** All Farms* ** || ** Conserved Acreage ** || ** Harvested Acreage* ** || ** Acreage Conserved ** || * 2007 figures from US Census of Agriculture
 * Table 1. Triangle farm and forestland enrolled in conservation easements as of March 2010.
 * ** County ** || ** Conserved
 * ** Triangle ** || 58 || 4279 || 2,821 || 206,422 || 1% ||
 * ** Chatham ** || 15 || 1089 || 947 || 22,335 || 4% ||
 * ** Durham ** || 5 || 242 || 344 || 4,714 || 7% ||
 * ** Johnston ** || 6 || 1245 || 1,016 || 110,772 || 1% ||
 * ** Lee ** || 4 || 272 || 257 || 14,544 || 2% ||
 * ** Orange ** || 19 || 604 || 655 || 18,447 || 4% ||
 * ** Wake ** || 9 || 827 || 455 || 35,610 || 1% ||

**Author:** Aimee Schmidt, NCSU(CNR) graduate student **Reviewers:** Tandy Jones, TLC; Dr. Nancy Creamer, NCSU CEFS Director

**Technical Notes**
The Triangle region is served by three nonprofit organizations that offer monitoring services for farmland easements: Triangle Land Conservancy, Eno River Association and Triangle Greenways Council. Jeff Masten, Director of Conservation Strategies, Triangle Land Conservancy, provided this data on 03.25.2010. Parcel information can be viewed on TLC's website and the data can be reviewed here: [|ConservationEasements.xlsx]