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32 <br />These program guidelines contain policies and procedures for administering a <br />conservation agreement program. <br />B. Duties and Responsibilities of the Buncombe County Agricultural Advisory Board <br />(hereinafter referred to as the Board) <br />The Board shall act on behalf of the County in administering the Conservation <br />Agreement Program within the Farmland Preservation Program. The Planning <br />Department shall make recommendations to the Board on the selection of <br />properties for purchase, lease, and/or donation and on the development of <br />purchase and lease priorities. The County Attorney shall execute any and all <br />documents necessary to purchase, lease, and/or accept donations of conservation <br />easements and perform any other'such acts necessary for the implementation of <br />this program. The Board shall administer this program within the financial <br />resources provided by the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners. <br />C. Definitions of Conservation Agreements <br />For purposes of this program, conservation agreements are defined as: <br />A "conservation agreement" means a right, whether or not stated in the form of a <br />restriction, reservation, easement, covenant or condition, in any deed, will or other <br />instrument executed by or on behalf Of.- the owner of the land or improvement <br />thereon or in any order of taking, apprpriate to retaining land or water areas <br />predominantly in their natural, scenic or open condition or in agricultural, <br />horticultural, farming or forest use, to forbid or limit any or all (i) construction or <br />placing of buildings, roads, signs, billboards or other advertising, utilities or other <br />structures on or above the ground, (ii) dumping or placing soil or other substance <br />or material as landfill, or dumping or. placing of trash, waste or unsightly -or <br />offensive materials, (iii) removal or destruction of trees, shrubs or other <br />vegetation, (iv) excavation, dredging or removal of loam, peat, gravel, soil, rock, <br />or other mineral substance in such manner as to affect the surface, (v) surface use <br />except for agricultural, farming, forest or outdoor recreational purposes or <br />purposes permitting the land or water area to remain predominantly in its natural <br />condition, (vi) activities detrimental to drainage, flood control, water conservation, <br />erosion control or soil conservation, or (vii) other acts or uses detrimental to such <br />retention of land or water areas.. None of the above limitations should be <br />interpreted to prevent a landowner from conducting agricultural activities as <br />defined in T (D). <br />2 <br />