Pennsylvania's Farmland Preservation Program has protected 35 farms in Columbia, Lackawanna, Lycoming, and Union counties from future residential and commercial development. The program buys development rights on farms, ensuring those areas stay farmland in the future.
One of the farms protected by the program is Soil Bound LLC Farm near Catawissa. Mark Rohrbach is a fourth-generation farmer who owns several farms in the Catawissa area. He says he hopes his children will take over his farms someday.
The program gives Rohrbach's children the opportunity to have open ground preserved for them for not only the next generation but for generations to come. It also gives them the opportunity to continue farming and earning a living off the land.
The Farmland Preservation Program has been in place since 1988. Since then, more than 6,000 Pennsylvania farms have been protected from future development. The program is funded by a combination of state and federal money.
Pennsylvania is committed to protecting its farmland, said Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding. The Farmland Preservation Program is a key part of that commitment.
The program is beneficial for both farmers and the environment. Farmers benefit from knowing that their land will remain farmland in the future. The environment benefits from the continued production of food and the protection of open space.
Photo Credit: gettyimages-jimfeng
Categories: Pennsylvania, Sustainable Agriculture