HARRISBURG – Pennsylvania’s Agricultural Land Preservation Board on Thursday protected the future of farming for another local farm operation, according to Sen. Gene Yaw (R-23).
The Richard O. Grace, Michael and Jamie Noll Farm, a 105-acre crop operation in Mifflinburg, will be protected from future residential, commercial or industrial development. It represents a targeted investment in the future of farming and food security in Pennsylvania. The farm is one of 30 farms and 2,638 acres approved this week to be safeguarded from future development.
“Pennsylvania’s farmland preservation program has been very successful over the years and has preserved countless farms across my Senate District,” Sen. Yaw said. “This program ensures that agriculture remains a top industry in our state, and I am happy to see yet another farm added to the list.”
In December, a Lycoming County farm was one of 32 farms added to the Pennsylvania Farmland Preservation Program, Yaw noted. In October, the 124-acre crop farm, owned by Elvin E. and Molly B. Stoltzfus, located in Kelly Township, Union County, was also added to the list of 5,843 Pennsylvania farms permanently preserved for agricultural production.
“Each preserved farm represents a commitment to Pennsylvania agriculture,” Senator Yaw added. “This commitment ensures that productive farmland, like the Noll farm, will be safeguarded for future generations.”
The Pennsylvania Agricultural Conservation Easement Purchase Program, as it is formally known, is dedicated to slowing the loss of prime farmland to non-agricultural uses. Funding allows state, county and local governments to purchase conservation easements from owners of quality farmland. State, county, local, and federal funds committed during the Board’s meeting are allocated to county programs to purchase development rights to preserve farms on county waiting lists.
To learn more about Pennsylvania’s Farmland Preservation Program, visit agriculture.pa.gov.
For more state-related news and information, visit Senator Yaw’s website at www.SenatorGeneYaw.com or on Facebook and Twitter @SenatorGeneYaw.
Nick Troutman
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