Farm preservation wins support in N.C. General Assembly

Following this year's grim USDA report that saw North Carolina once again leading the nation in loss of farmland, there is some good news to report to farmers and advocates of land conservation out of the North Carolina General Assembly (G.A.).

A bipartisan majority of House and Senate members in the G.A. have sponsored legislation to authorize a statewide bond referendum on spending $1 billion over the next five years to protect North Carolina's critical water and land resources.

As of session's end on Wednesday, March 18, there were 65 sponsors in the House and 28 in the Senate for identical House Bill 990 and Senate Bill 1522, the Land and Water Conservation Bond Act of 2007.

"This broad bipartisan support recognizes the urgency to protect special places important to the economy and quality of life in our state," said Kate Dixon, executive director of Land for Tomorrow.

The vast majority of the bonds would be distributed to land and water trust funds the General Assembly established in the 1980s and 90s.

Money for those trust funds has been used to protect thousands of miles of drinking and recreational waters in North Carolina, establish state parks, fund local recreation projects and preserve unique natural areas and historic places.

Approximately $200 million of the bonds would go towards protecting prime agricultural and forest lands. In 2005, North Carolina lost 1,000 farms, tying it for tops in the nation with Florida and Tennessee.

Funds would be used to pay landowners for conservation easements to continue working the land and not to develop their farms or forests.

"The trust funds have done a good job, but rapid land development and skyrocketing land prices have outpaced the trust funds' ability to keep up,".Dixon said. "Last year, there was a $300 million-plus shortfall in needs compared to funds available."

A Land for Tomorrow report found that more than 100,000 acres of North Carolina land are developed each year. North Carolina has one of the nation's fastest growing populations, and more than 3,300 miles of the state's streams and rivers don't meet water quality standards, according to the most updated reports.

"The rate at which North Carolina is losing its farmland and natural areas is alarming," said Paul Carlson, executive director of the Land Trust for the Little Tennessee. "The Land for Tomorrow initiative is an investment in the future by making resources available today to save at-risk lands.

We need to be investing to conserve our "green infrastructure" of farmland, forestland, natural areas and greenways if we are to be good stewards of our land for future generations. I am proud that our mountain legislators are strong proponents of land conservation."

Carlson refers to Sen. John Snow (D-Cherokee), who serves as a co-sponsor of the bill in the Senate and Rep. Phil Haire (D-Sylva), a primary sponsor of the bill in the House.

Land for Tomorrow is a diverse partnership of more than 250 organizations, including local governments, businesses, conservationists, farmers and health care professionals that is urging the GA to spend $1 billion over the next five years to protect North Carolina's water, land and historic places.

Dixon said Land for Tomorrow's total focus and reason for being is to garner funding for this initiative. For additional information, including resources and reports, visit www.landfortomorrow.org.