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25 <br /> soils , located in water supply watershed , culturally significant , and/ or includes significant <br /> natural area . See 1DA ) . <br /> Objective 3A . 9 : Increase annual state funding for the Farmland Preservation Trust Fund , Nvith <br /> establishment of dedicated funding sources to supplement general appropriations . <br /> ■ Increase funding for trust fund from the present $ 1 . 5 million to at least $ 15 million . <br /> ■ Establish a surcharge on public water supply users , to be set aside for protection of critical <br /> water- quality protection lands in the watershed where the water resource is to be protected . <br /> ■ Establish a mitigation fee for every acre of farmland taken out of agricultural production for <br /> development purposes , either a flat amount or a percentage of the sale price . <br /> ■ Dedicate rollback taxes obtained within a county to fiend farmland preservation . <br /> Objective 3A . 10 : Enable counties and municipalities to defer or eliminate property taxes on <br /> private land subject to conservation easements or other long - term conservation management <br /> agreements . <br /> B . ENHANCE PROTECTION OF FORESTS <br /> Objective 3B . 1 : Support increased coordination with local government . <br /> ■ Improve coordination of state forestry management staff and practices with local government <br /> land- use , open space , watershed , and natural area protection plans . <br /> ■ Enable counties to enact ordinances for tree protection that are equivalent in statutory <br /> authority to those powers already afforded to some municipalities . <br /> Objective 3B . 2e. Support notice prior to cutting . <br /> ■ Support legislation to give the NC Forest Service and local government pre - harvest <br /> notification of thirty ( 30 ) days . <br /> Objective 3B . 3e. Develop strategy to protect significant natural areas . <br /> ■ Encourage purchase of timber rights for significant natural areas identified and adopted by a <br /> county following a natural areas inventory . Require Forest Service to notify property owners <br /> of areas that are so designated , and to coordinate cooperation between the local government <br /> and private landowners . <br /> ■ Add low - impact conservation forestland as another category of private property eligible for <br /> present use property tax assessment , in addition to lands used for active forest management , <br /> agriculture , and horticulture . Currently only forest plans that include cutting qualify for <br /> property tax reductions . ( See 3A . 6 ) . <br /> 11 <br />