Agenda - 06-16-20; 8-d - Voluntary Agricultural District Designation - Multiple Farms

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program at the January 2020 meeting. All farm applications were reviewed and verified to have met or exceeded the minimum criteria for certification into the program. The Agricultural Preservation Board voted unanimously to recommend approval of the certification for these two (2) farms, and their inclusion in the Voluntary Agricultural District program. The certification documentation is on file in the DEAPR/Soil and Water Conservation District office. The farms are described briefly below: Brief Farm Descriptions: 1) Owner James W. Rogers has submitted an application to enroll two (2) parcels of land totaling 46.05 acres as qualifying farmland for the Voluntary Agricultural District (VAD) program in the White Cross Agricultural District. The farm operation includes corn, wheat, soybeans, and hay crops. The farm has been evaluated against each of the VAD certification requirement standards and meets or exceeds all of the measures above. 2) Owners Betsy Pierce and Gaston Pierce have submitted an application to enroll two (2) parcels of land totaling 50.8 acres as qualifying farmland for the Voluntary Agricultural District (VAD) program in the White Cross Agricultural District. The farm operation includes wheat, corn, and soybean crops. The farm has been evaluated against each of the VAD certification requirement standards and meets or exceeds all of the measures above. FINANCIAL IMPACT: There is no fiscal impact associated with this item. Voluntary Agricultural Districts are non-monetary and non-binding conservation agreements. SOCIAL JUSTICE IMPACT: The following Orange County Social Justice Goal is applicable to this item: • GOAL: ENSURE ECONOMIC SELF-SUFFICIENCY The creation and preservation of infrastructure, policies, programs and funding necessary for residents to provide shelter, food, clothing and medical care for themselves and their dependents. The Orange County Voluntary Agricultural District Program ordinance conserves, protects and encourages the preservation and improvement of agricultural land within the County boundaries as a critical component of the County's cultural and rural character and its economy by virtue of the production of food, fiber and other products. The purpose of this Ordinance is to reduce the loss of productive and existing farmland by promoting agricultural values and the general welfare of the County, recognize the existence of important farmlands by seeking to minimize risks of nuisance suits that arise from the onset of other land uses, encourage participation in voluntary programs to preserve and protect farmland from non-farm development and increase identity and awareness of the agricultural community, and its role in the economic and cultural quality of life for all County residents. (from the Orange County Farmland Preservation/VAD Program Ordinance) ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT: The following Orange County Environmental Responsibility Goal impacts are applicable to this item: • ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND WASTE REDUCTION Initiate policies and programs that: 1) conserve energy; 2) reduce resource consumption; 3) increase the use of recycled and renewable resources; and 4) minimize waste stream impacts on the environment. • RESULTANT IMPACT ON NATURAL RESOURCES AND AIR QUALITY 2