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Farmland Legacy: Land Protection Tools

Farm at EveningLand protection and preservation tools range from enrolling your farm in a conservation program to placing a conservation easement on your farm which will permanently limit the type and amount of development on your property while retaining private ownership.

For additional farmland preservation information, please visit the Farmland Information Center. The FIC is a clearinghouse for information about farmland protection and stewardship. It is a parnership between the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service and the American Farmland Trust.

 

Programs

The Tennessee Department of Agriculture and The Land Trust for Tennessee are ready to help protect working farms with the Transaction Assistance Fund. This fund can assist with some of the project costs which can include attorney fees, survey fees, appraisals, and stewardship donations for the perpetual stewardship of the conservation agreements. Last year this fund assisted in the protection of 1,100 acres of farmland in Tennessee.

To find out more about the assistance fund, contact Emily Parish at The Land Trust for Tennessee at (615) 244-5263 or eparish@landtrusttn.org.

Resources

  • Landowner Information Packet [930 KB pdf] - Land Trust for Tennessee, 2008. This packet of basic information for landowners describes how The Land Trust for Tennessee can help you meet your land preservation goals. It answers many frequently answered questions about conservation easements.
  • Agricultural Conservation Easements - Farmland Information Center, American Farmland Trust, 2008. This fact sheet provides basic information about agricultural conservation easements.

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