Saratoga Springs, New York, May 14, 2009- Yesterday, New York State’s Farmland Protection Program awarded $23 million to permanently protect 8,940 acres on 27 farms.  Since 1996, the program has awarded more than $173 million to protect 303 farms encompassing 72,668 acres. 

“We greatly appreciate Governor Paterson and the state legislature’s leadership in protecting these 27 farms,” said David Haight, New York Director for the American Farmland Trust (AFT).  “These investments in tough economic times will help farmers improve their businesses.  They’ll use these funds to engage in conservation projects, pay down debt, buy new equipment and upgrade farm operations.  These dollars will cycle through many other local businesses.” 

“New Yorkers are incredibly interested in knowing where their food comes from,” added Haight.  “We like to say, ‘No farms, no food.’  If farmland is developed, we lose the opportunity to grow fresh, healthy foods here in New York.  Protecting these farms strengthens New York’s food security and food system.”

On May 5, the United States Department of Agriculture announced the availability of
$2.6 million in funds to protect farmland in New York.  Funds from the federal Farm and Ranchland Protection Program (FRPP) can be used to match funding available from New York State’s Farmland Protection Program that covers up to 75 percent of a project’s costs.  Applications for this federal funding are due by June 1.    

“The timing of this announcement is very important as it enables recipients of state funds to apply for matching federal dollars.  Without prompt action by Governor Paterson and the Department of Agriculture and Markets, we might have lost these important federal funds,” Haight added.

New York’s Farmland Protection Program was created in 1996 and provides grants for eligible towns and counties to purchase development rights on farmland.  Purchase of development rights (PDR) is a voluntary farmland protection technique that pays farmland owners to permanently conserve their land for agriculture.  Purchase of development rights places a deed restriction—known as a conservation easement—on enrolled property.  When farmland owners sell their development rights, they retain all other ownership rights and can continue to farm as before.  Participating farmers work with local governments and frequently private, nonprofit land trusts to ensure that participating farms are protected in perpetuity.

The enacted 2009-10 New York State budget allocated $23 million from the state’s Environmental Protection Fund to the Farmland Protection Program.  In 2008, there were 190 farm families across New York interested in participating in the Farmland Protection Program to protect 49,400 acres at a cost of $156.5 million. 

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