American Farmland Trust's projects in Maryland enlist farmers, environmentalists, urbanites and rural dwellers—all the people who must work together if agriculture is to have a chance.
Innovation and Tradition on Maryland’s Eastern Shore
Forging new links between the Mid-Atlantic's urban and rural constituencies is one of many components of a strategy to sustain a thriving resource-based economy on Maryland's Eastern Shore. Developed by AFT for the Eastern Shore Land Conservancy with funding from the Maryland Center for Agro-Ecology, Inc., the strategy offers a model for other communities where commodity-based agriculture and other resource-based enterprises must adapt to globalization and development pressure.
Read Innovation and Tradition on Maryland’s Eastern Shore [PDF]
Corn Nutrient Research Pilot Project: Helping Maryland Farmers Reduce Agricultural Runoff Through Conservation Incentives
The goal of this project is to work with a few Maryland farmers to test methods to reduce nutrient applications without negatively affecting the economics of farming. Corn farmers who have implemented a certified Nutrient Management Plan (NMP) and would like to try more aggressive nutrient management techniques or farmers that recently were required to revise their NMP due to new phosphorus regulations or changes in their farming operation can receive a yield guarantee through a special pilot project being initiated by American Farmland Trust. more Download a Fact Sheet
Conserving the Green Network between Baltimore and D.C.
AFT initiated the Delmarva Farmland Strategy Project to bring new tools to communities that are struggling to accommodate change and growth while retaining a profitable agricultural sector. Included in the project are a suite of low-cost studies using each community's financial, land use and economic records and statistics to bring a local perspective to decisions about land use, fiscal and economic issues. These tools can change the dialogue in a community from speculation to projection and from emotion to analysis. more
25 Years of Farmland Protection: An Evaluation of the Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Foundation
American Farmland Trust (AFT) conducted an evaluation of MALPF because—at 26 years—it is one of the oldest and most respected farmland protection programs in the country. AFT wanted to find out if MALPF has met the goals outlined by the General Assembly and to provide recommendations to help it become more effective in meeting these goals in the future. more
