ANNAPOLIS, Md. – The Maryland Board of Public Works has approved 38 new Maryland Agricultural Preservation Foundation easements during their June 21 meeting. The easements will permanently preserve 4,097 acres of prime farmland in Caroline, Carroll, Cecil, Charles, Dorchester, Frederick, Harford, Howard, Kent, St. Mary’s, Somerset, Talbot, Washington, Wicomico, and Worcester counties, for an investment of more than $19 million.
“Maryland’s beauty and heritage are woven into its 2 million acres of farmland and preserving this precious land is crucial to sustaining the state’s agriculture industry,” said Maryland Department of Agriculture Secretary Kevin Atticks. “I am grateful for and thank all the farmers who volunteered to sell preservation easements through the preservation program.
The Maryland Agricultural Preservation Foundation was established in 1977 as part of the Maryland Department of Agriculture. The foundation purchases agricultural preservation easements from willing farmers to forever protect prime farmland and woodland.
To view a list of the Maryland Agricultural Preservation Foundation easements broken down by county, visit our website. The newly-approved easements will help the state meet its Chesapeake Bay goal of conserving and preserving over 1 million acres of productive agricultural land by 2030.
For more information, please contact the foundation’s Executive Director Michelle Cable at (410) 841-5860 or michelle.cable@maryland.gov.
I am 100% behind preserving farmland, but why do millions of tax dollars need to be involved when these properties are already owned by the farmers themselves? I can see the state paying for signage, but I don’t get the rest of it. Maybe you can fill me in
That’s a good question for the next BAR meeting at the state house…
This is the news I needed today.