Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program in Ohio

The Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program is a voluntary program of the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to protect working agricultural lands by limiting non-agricultural uses.  NRCS works with approved state, local and non-profit entities who arrange for the purchase of development rights through conservation easements on private lands.  The entity holds and manages these conservation easements in perpetuity.

Notice of 2011 Program Funding - Updated!

Four funding periods are scheduled for consideration of applications for proposed easements for fiscal year 2011.  These periods are:

• December 31, 2010
• February 28, 2011
• April 29, 2011
• June 30, 2011

The entity must be deemed eligible before any proposed easements submitted by that entity will be considered. All required easement data must be included for the application to be considered.

Funds for FRPP will be awarded to the highest ranked eligible applications through a statewide competitive process. All proposed easements applications are ranked individually on their own merit.  Funds will be used to reimburse the entities for up to 50 percent of the appraised fair market value of the conservation easement on approved applications.

Applications submitted after August 16, 2010,  will be held for fiscal year 2011 funding consideration.
 

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Entity Eligibility Criteria

Any state or local unit of government, or non-profit organization in Ohio can apply for FRPP funds by  submitting an Application for Federal Funding (SF-424, SF-424a and SF-424b), and by demonstrating:

• Commitment to long-term conservation of agricultural lands;
• Ability to acquire, manage, and enforce easements;
• Sufficient staff dedicated to monitoring and easement stewardship; and
• The availability of funds for each application.

Eligible entities will be notified by email of their eligibility status and if an agreement with NRCS for a period of three years will be developed. Within 30 days of agreement signing, the entity will be required to submit a draft easement deed for NRCS approval.

Proposed Easement Eligibility

Eligible land must:

• Be privately owned;
• Contain at least 50 percent prime, unique, statewide, or locally important farmland;
• Be subject to a pending offer or option to purchase;
• Contain cropland, grassland, pasture land, or forest land that contributes to the economic viability of an agricultural operation;
• Not include forest land of greater than two-thirds of the easement; and
• Possess on-site and off-site conditions which will allow the easement to be effective in achieving the purposes of the program.

The eligibility of the land and the landowner for each proposed easement must be established at the time the application is submitted for potential funding.

For each proposed easement application, the landowner’s legal name and contact information must be provided. The landowner must complete a CPA 1200.  The landowner must be compliant with Highly Erodible and Wetland Conservation provisions of the 1985 Farm Bill, as amended. A current AD-1026 must be on file with the Farm Service Agency and must be included with the application.

Landowners also must meet the adjusted gross income limitation, earning less than $1 million in non-farm income for each of the past three years, unless more than 66 percent of the total gross income was from farm income. A current CCC-926 must be included with the application.

Conservation management plans are required on FRPP easements with highly erodible land located within the proposed easement area.

Forest management plans are required on all FRPP easements with forest cover on greater than 40 acres or 20 percent of the easement area (whichever is greater).

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In addition to the above, the entity must include:

• a copy of the signed easement offer with parcel legal description,
• a listing of funding sources and amounts for each application,
• a current aerial photograph with the easement area and local road network indicated,
• a map of the proposed easement boundary, and
• a completed proposed easement ranking sheet.

The maps and ranking sheet shall include only those lands for which the FRPP program funds are requested; not any exception areas located on the farm. The ranking sheet should contain the specific proposed easement details as well as the subsequent score. Details include:

• Percent of prime, unique, and important farmland in the proposed easement;
• Percent of cropland, pastureland, and grassland in the proposed easement;
• Ratio of total acres in the proposed easement to the average farm size in the county;
• Proximity of the proposed easement to other preserved farms, or land;
• Proximity of the proposed easement to other agricultural operations and infrastructure;

NRCS Proposed Easement Application Ranking Process

As part of the ranking and eligibility process, NRCS will complete a pre-acquisition database search for hazardous materials on or near the proposed easement. In addition, NRCS will conduct an on-site visit to determine the condition of the land. NRCS will also interview the landowner to ensure that all FRPP requirements are understood and that any information collected is accurate and complete.

As a condition for participation, a conservation plan for all Highly Erodible land on the farm must exist or be developed. To ensure compliance with the plan, the easement shall grant to the United States, through NRCS and its successor or assigns, a right of access to the easement area.

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Application Submissions

All applications for 2010 funding must be received by 4 PM of the funding period end date. Due to the inclusion of personal and private information, no electronic submittals will be accepted. Applications should be marked “PRIVATE” and be addressed to:

Matt Harbage, FRPP Program Manager
USDA-NRCS 200 North High Street, Room 522
Columbus, OH 43215

Entity Application Materials

If you encounter any problems with the files provided on this page, please contact Chris Coulon at 614-255-2471.

The following documents require Adobe Acrobat.

Entity Application Form (PDF; 26 KB)
Landowner Parcel Application (PDF; 25KB)

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Ohio’s Farmland Loss

Of Ohio’s 26,206,720 acres, there are 11,597,600 acres are classified as prime farmland. Although Ohio ranks 39th in the nation in total state land area, Ohio is fifth in the nation in percent of state land area that is classified as prime farmland (source: 2000a National Resources Inventory).  In a more alarming analysis of NRI data, Ohio lost more acres of prime farmland during the period 1987 to 1997 than any other state in the Nation, with the exception of Texas.

Since 1987, Ohio has lost 627,100 acres of farmland, of which 352,600 acres were prime farmland. The average size of an Ohio county is 300,500 acres.   During that ten year span, Ohio lost more than one county’s area of prime farmland.

FRPP Activity in Ohio

Since 2002, the first year of the program in Ohio, over 25,000 acres of farmland have been enrolled in FRPP.  Nearly 90 percent of the protected land is classified as prime soils.

In Fiscal Year 2008, $3,055,635 was awarded to state and local government and non-profit entities for purchasing easements through their farmland protection programs. To date, $18,336,000 has been provided to state, county, township and land trust programs in Ohio through the FRPP.

Additional Information

National FRPP Website

2009 FRPP Archive

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Contact Person:

Matthew Harbage - Program Manager
614-255-2461