Farming is a bedrock of North Carolina. But the state is losing farmland at an alarming rate. This hurts the state in several ways, and more leaders should join the effort to reverse the loss. More farmers should be kept in business. And when some decide to sell out, preservation of farmland should be balanced with responsible development.
Figures from the U.S. Census of Agriculture show that North Carolina lost more than 600,000 acres of farmland from 2002 to 2007, The Associated Press reported last week. The state is down to 8.5 million acres of farmland, compared with 9.1 million acres in 2002. Forsyth County reported 43,593 acres of farmland in 2007, compared with 51,598 in 2002.
Farmers were already struggling, and the recession has hit them especially hard. Competition with national and overseas growers is all the harder. Good farmers go bankrupt, or close to it, trying to do a job that has always been part of the foundation of American life.
At the same time, the state's population is growing. Cash-strapped farmers are selling out to developers. One can't blame the farmers or the developers. More housing is needed. But we need farms as well.
We're losing local food markets. Ultimately, we'll pay more for our food because more of it will be trucked in and flown in. Transporting it will burn up more fuel and cause more pollution. We'll lose farming jobs, as well as those that go along with it, such as in food processing.
And the farmland, and the forests that often go with it, sustain ecosystems. Well-managed farms help protect drinking water by maintaining wetlands and stream buffers.
Programs that help farmers stay in business are crucial. For example, N.C. State University has a program to help dairy farmers. In general, North Carolina needs more policies to protect farmland.
On the federal level, farm policy should be changed so that more money goes to conservation, regional markets and smaller producers, instead of large corporate farmers that produce a few select crops.
And when farmers decide to sell their land, efforts to preserve some of it are crucial. "The problem is we spend a year basically working on a project and protect 200 acres," said Kevin Redding, the executive director of the Piedmont Land Conservancy. "There is no way we can keep up with the pace of farms being lost."
The Piedmont Land Conservancy concentrates its efforts on farm preservation in rural areas where it can make the most difference.
Farmers who donate land can get tax write-offs. Some conservancies also buy land from farmers willing to sell it for reasonable prices.
Farmland is dwindling. The best way to save more of it is by keeping farmers in business. And when farmers want to sell, some parcels should be preserved, balancing that effort with responsible development.
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