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Conservation Trust |
North Carolina leads nation in loss of farmsLand trusts work to meet rising challenge North Carolina lost 1,000 farms during 2005, tying Florida and Tennessee for the most farms lost in the nation according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. There are now less than 50,000 farms in the state compared to the 300,000 that existed in 1950. Since 2002 alone, NC has lost more than 6,000 farms and 300,000 acres of farmland. To stem this tide, Governor Mike Easley has include $6 million in his budget for the Agricultural Development and Farmland Preservation Trust Fund. North Carolina's family farms are a key part of the state's agricultural economy, heritage, and quality of life. Agriculture is the state's largest industry, with the agribusiness sector contributing $68.3 billion annually to the state's economy and employing 17% of its workforce. Thriving farms maintain water and air quality, productive soils, wildlife habitat, local economies, and our rural heritage. Land trusts assist farmers with conservation agreements and other options that preserve farmland. Development is a major threat to North Carolina farms and some of North Carolina's most productive and fertile farmland is in the most rapidly growing areas of the state. Most farmers want to preserve their land, but need options that provide financial compensation for their development rights and/or tax incentives they can use to improve the economic viability of the farm operation, help reduce debt, and/or provide cash for their retirement. North Carolina land trusts are working with the NC Tobacco Trust Fund Commission to assist tobacco farmers and buyout participants in evaluating how placing a conservation easement on their farm can assist them in protecting their farms from development. Land trusts are also working to educate legislators about the need for increased state funding for the Agricultural Development and Farmland Preservation Trust Fund, which can provide funding to buy development rights for farms, support local farmland preservation planning and incentive programs, and provide grants to improve the financial viability of the farming operation. Please consider contacting your state legislators to ask them to appropriate at least $10 million to the ADFPTF this year and join conservation advocates in Raleigh on April 25 for Land and Water Conservation Lobby Day. You also can help land trusts protect more farms by donating to the Conservation Trust and/or your local land trusts. Your contribution will help keep North Carolina healthy and productive for future generations.
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