Agenda - 03-10-1987 - Laserfiche WebLink

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76 / management . These soils were primarily on slopes exceeding 7.5% . A total of 16,117 acres of farmland lies within the Rural Buffer Area of Joint Planning, 13,678 acres in Chapel Hill Township and 2,439 acres in Bingham. Of this total, 3,230 acres are comprised of prime farmland, i .e., soils best suited for producing food, etc, as noted in number 1 . Even though the total acreage of farmland tracts is somewhat less in the University Lake Watershed area as compared with north Chapel Hill, the quality of soils conducive to high yield farming approaches comparability (1482 acres of prime farmland in University Lake Rural Buffer, 1648 in North Chapel Hill Rural Buffer) . The Southern Triangle Rural Buffer contains 100 acres of prime, 95 acres , of state and important farmlands (number 2) , and 115 acres of other lands (number 3) . By elimination one can deduce that 12,887 acres of Rural Buffer farmland fall within categories 2 and 3, soils which require some degree of management and control in order to produce yields, or soils not suited for crop production at all . Category number 2 slightly exceeds number 3 in total acreage. It is felt that those Rural Buffer farmland tracts which fit the prime farmland category should be maintained as produc- tive land. First and foremost this would allow continuity of rural industry, farming, and entrust soil resources to those who know best the land ' s capacity. It would further maintain the heritage and tradition of farming so important to North Carolina generally and to farming families specifically. Lastly, it would meet the long-range planning goals of Orange County Planning to preserve the existing rural character of the land . This priority would apply in establishing zoning/ land use guidelines to all 16,117 acres of farmland in the Rural Buffer with the highest order of preservation applying to prime farm land. Particular scrutiny should be given the more isolated farmland tracts which dot the Rural Buffer, and a special effort made to preserve them in their entirety as rural productive land. They serve particularly well the aesthetic amenity criterion, in addition to their classification as crop yielding tracts. Sources include "Important Farmlands, A Supplement To Soil Survey Report of Orange County", Computer tabulations citing 1986 parcels in township 6-7 with land use exemptions, dated January 9, 1987, and JPA Base Maps scaled 1 :1000 for acreage calculations .