Farmland Protection
Agreement to be signed

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Loess Hills sites to be protected first

This article was written and posted on INHF's website in December 2001.

USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation and The Nature Conservancy of Iowa will sign an agreement starting Iowa’s first Farmland Protection Program on Friday, December 14, at 9 a.m. at the Marshalltown Best Western Motel. The signing ceremony will take place before conservationists from all over the state at the annual Conservation Districts of Iowa state meeting.

The Farmland Protection Program is a voluntary program that offers financial incentives to landowners that choose to keep their land in agricultural production rather than being developed. By offering matching funds to state, tribal and local governments and organizations, agricultural easements on productive farmland are purchased. These easements keep agricultural land in production and protect that land from residential and commercial development.

“We expect to announce shortly the completion of the first of five farmland protection easements,” said Leroy Brown, NRCS State Conservationist. “Our groups are talking with producers that farm in the Loess hills. The easements that result should keep some 920 acres of farmland from development in Plymouth, Woodbury, and Monona Counties.” Brown added, “The partnership agreement between Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation and The Nature Conservancy of Iowa will make this type of farmland protection possible in Iowa.”

The signing ceremony will take place as conservationists from around the state gather at the annual meeting of the Iowa Association of Conservation Districts. Iowa’s 100 Soil and Water Conservation Districts (SWCD) are responsible for carrying out soil conservation and water quality protection programs at the local level.

Recent legislation authorized federal matching funds for farmland protection. This allows the Natural Resources Conservation Service to enter into agreements with governments and organizations to protect farmland from urban development. The agreement being signed on Friday starts Iowa’s participation in this national program. According to Brown, NRCS expects to enter into other agreements that will protect additional acres of Iowa farmland.

Resources on Farmland Protection:

Natural Resources Conservation Service of Iowa:
www.ia.nrcs.usda.gov/programs.htm

The Nature Conservancy of Iowa:
www.nature.org/wherewework/northamerica/states/iowa/

It appears there is support for additional Farmland Protection. For the latest on the Farm Bill, see:
www.nacdnet.org/

National NRCS Photo Gallery:
http://photogallery.nrcs.usda.gov/



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