NS - Grant Application Federal Farm & Ranch Land Protection Program for Ag Conservation Easements

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NC Bulletin 300-4-10 Page 2 To ensure that the proper land is enrolled, land must: • Be of sufficient size allowing for efficient management of the agricultural operation • Have a preponderance of soils of prime, unique, or statewide/local importance or contain significant historic or archaeological sites • Have access to markets for ag products and an infrastructure appropriate for agricultural production • Not be subject to an existing easement or deed restriction • Not be owned in fee title by an agency of the United States Proposals will receive a higher priority with lands and locations that: • Help create a large tract of protected area for viable agricultural production • Link other federal, tribal, state, local, or non-governmental organization efforts with complementary farmland protection or conservation programs • Provide special social, economic, and environmental benefits to the region • Protect a National Register of Historic Places site or a site with significant archaeological importance • Have permanent easements • Have pending offers supported by a signed appraisal The attached ranking worksheet (Attachment 3) provides a scoring process that considers many of the prioritization factors described above. Please note that if land is being offered for enrollment based upon the presence of historic or archaeological sites, then additional narrative information is needed as per Part 519.41 d of the manual. Please note that a significant change is that a landowner donation of up to 25% of the fair market price of the easement can be used as part of the local matching funds. The purchase price is the fair market value acquired through standard real property appraisal and is the difference between the value of the unencumbered property and the value of the property with the easement restrictions. In the case of purchasing easements, the NRCS share of the purchase price shall not exceed 50% of the fair market value. Refer to Part 519.52b for an explanation of payment shares when a landowner donates part of the easement and therefore accepts less than the fair market value. All land enrolled in USDA Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program easements must have a conservation plan developed and implemented. The conservation plan should be signed by the landowner prior to recording the easement. (While the plan is not required to be developed when the initial proposal is submitted fo NRCS for possible funding, it is important that the applicants included in the proposal understand the requirement for developing and implementing a conservation plan.) The plan will be reviewed for technical adequacy by the local NRCS district conservationist and submitted to the local soil and water conservation district for approval. All practices shall meet the standards and specifications contained in Section 4 of the NRCS Field Office Technical Guide. The conservation plan on highly erodible land (HEL), if applicable, must be implemented within 12 months (1 year) of the easement closing. Landowners have 4 years to implement the plan on non-HEL and must begin installation of at least one practice within 12 months of the date the easement is recorded. In situations where the 4-year implementation schedule creates an extreme hardship on the applicant, the NRCS State Conservationist has authority to extend the implementation period. NOTE: The Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program does not provide any cost share to install the practices required by the plan. While the landowner is responsible for installation, cost share funds, if available, can be used to implement the plan. Approval of cost share funds will 6e subject to the terms of