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r <br /> MEMORANDUM <br /> TO: County Commissioners <br /> FROM: Paul Thames, PE, County Enginee <br /> DATE: March 6, 1997 <br /> SUBJECT: Existing and proposed open space/conservation easement programs and processes within <br /> Orange County <br /> COPIES: John Link, County Manger <br /> Marvin Collins, Planning Director <br /> Don Cox, Soil and Water Conservation District Supervisor <br /> Brent Bogue, District Conservationist, NRCS <br /> In accordance with the request of the County Manger,_I have endeavored to discover and examine some <br /> of the various organizations, programs, initiatives, etc., which may impact efforts to create or preserve <br /> open space within Orange County. Agencies involved in the various open space programs include the <br /> Orange County Planning Department, the Natural Resources Conservation Service(MRCS)/Orange <br /> County Soil and Water District/US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Orange Water and Sewer <br /> Authority(OWASA). The programs or initiatives which these agencies use to implement open space <br /> strategies include OWASA's water shed protection and agricultural nutrient recycling programs; the <br /> Planning Department's farmland preservation, PDR/TDR, flexible development and land trust <br /> management plans; and the NRCS/Soil and Water Conservation District/USDA Conservation Easement <br /> Program, Wetland Reserve Program, Wildlife Habitat Incentive Program(WHIP), Conservation Reserve <br /> Program(CRP) and Environmental Quality Improvement Program(EQUIP). <br /> Currently a number of Planning Department open space related initiatives are either being developed or <br /> have already been implemented. Planning staff are currently working with the Agricultural Districts <br /> Advisory Board to develop strategies for farmland preservation. One strategy involves developing and <br /> evaluating a proposal to use a voluntary purchase of development rights (PDR's) process which would be <br /> funded by roll back tax receipts. These revenues become available when land use is converted from uses <br /> (primarily agraiculture and forestry)that receive property tax use valuation to uses which receive pmarket <br /> value property tax valuation. Planning staff have determined that in the period from 1991 to 1995 roll <br /> back tax receipts have totaled approximately $900,000 as generated by the removal of 11,568 acres from <br /> use valuation. <br /> OWASA operations related to watershed protection and recycling of biosolids create significant open <br /> space potential within Orange County. Currently, under the auspices of its Agricultural Nutrient <br /> Recycling Program, OWASA owns and operates 750 acres on which it applies nitrogenous biosolids. <br /> This land is then used to grow a variety of grain and silage crops used primarily for animal feed. It is <br /> assumed that this land will remain as open space for an extended period of time, although biosolid <br />