State Grant Offers Farmers Permanent Farmland Protections

Farms are more than open fields. They are businesses, workplaces, sources of food and an important part of the local economy. Now, Oswego County farmers may have an opportunity to receive financial compensation while helping ensure their land remains available for agricultural use for generations to come.

New York State’s Farmland Protection Implementation Grant (FPIG) program is designed to help permanently protect viable farmland from being converted for housing, shopping centers and other non-agricultural development.

“With Micron and other regional projects starting to come to fruition, we’re excited about the potential for economic growth in the years ahead,” said Oswego County Legislator Mary Ellen Chesbro, District 10, chairwoman of the Legislature’s Economic Development and Planning Committee. “However, we also want to ensure that our farmers and agricultural heritage are preserved for generations beyond that.

“New York has more than 6.5 million acres of farmland, and agriculture and related industries play a major role in the state’s economy,” she added. “Much of that economic activity begins on farms in communities such as ours.”

Farmland protection programs work from the ground up to help farmers, small and large, who are at a critical crossroads right now. About 30% of the state’s farmers are over age 65, while another 30% are between 55 and 64. As older farmers consider retirement and succession, they may face pressure to sell their land for development if a new generation is not ready to take over.

FPIG offers them another option by providing funding for projects that establish agricultural conservation easements on eligible farmland. This is a legal agreement that permanently limits certain future development while allowing the property to remain in private ownership and continue to be farmed.

For a participating landowner, the process generally involves working with an eligible organization, such as a county agricultural and farmland protection board, municipality, conservation group or soil and water conservation district.

If a project is approved, the landowner places a permanent agricultural conservation easement on the eligible property and receives compensation associated with the value of that easement, subject to the program’s appraisal, eligibility and funding requirements.

The financial compensation associated with an easement may give farmers additional resources to strengthen their operations. They may be able to use those funds for new barns, equipment, farm improvements or other business purposes.

The specific rights retained by the landowner and the restrictions placed on the property are established in the conservation easement. Generally, the farmer continues to own and farm the property, but future development and other uses that conflict with the agricultural purpose of the land are permanently restricted.

The program is important to understand because the easement is permanent. That means farmers and their families should carefully consider the long-term effects on the property, farm succession plans and future land-use decisions before entering into an agreement.

FPIG programs are not simply a grant for farm improvements or equipment purchases. Their primary purpose is to protect the farmland.

“Here in Oswego County, that effort is about looking beyond the next growing season,” Chesbro said. “We want to keep today’s farms productive while preserving opportunities for tomorrow’s farmers. Agricultural conservation not only helps maintain local food production, but it also strengthens our communities and protects an important part of our agricultural heritage.”

The effect of losing farmland to development stretches beyond the farmers who own it. Local farms purchase supplies, hire workers, sell products and support other businesses. Maintaining productive farms can help keep those economic benefits within local communities.

Most importantly, protecting farmland protects food supply. According to the American Farmland Trust, more than 80% of the fruits and vegetables grown in New York are produced on farms threatened by development. Once a productive farm is developed, returning that land to agricultural use can be extremely difficult.

For landowners considering the program, the first step is learning what a permanent agricultural conservation easement would mean for their farm and family. They should contact an eligible organization to determine if their property could be a candidate before starting an application.

In Oswego County, farmers can write to New York Agricultural Land Trust, P.O. Box 216, Elbridge, N.Y. 13060 or email NYALT Executive Director Brandy Colebrook at info@nyalt.org. FPIG applications are accepted on a rolling basis until available state funding has been used.

About New York Agricultural Land Trust:

Founded in 2006, NYALT is a non-profit organization focused on conserving working farmland and forestland and promoting appreciation of the natural resources those lands provide.

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