Orange County NC Website
Browse       Search
Draft 10/8/99 <br />E. <br />County program is adopted, the potential for a County Land Trust <br />Alliance and agreements between the different parties may be <br />pursued to formalize to some degree the level of collaboration <br />already begun.. In addition to collaboration on acquisitions, another <br />area of .continued interest might be in joint resource- investigation. <br />TLC has recently completed the third of three reports funded by the <br />County on natural resources and wildlife habitat in the County. <br />With this history of collaboration on resource investigation, the <br />potential of continuing this arrangement (augmented by the input <br />of the new County Land Resources Manager) may be prudent. <br />Working with Other Organizations <br />In addition to the land trusts, there are other public organizations <br />within the. County-that may have related goals. that warrant further <br />....consideration. <br />For example, as noted in .the- program forming the Environment and <br />.Resource Conservation Department, the Orange Soil and Water <br />District has a number of programs and interests -particularly. of <br />an agricultural nature -that are. related to the County's potential <br />program. The District has the authority to hold easements, and has <br />stafF experienced in the- monitoring of agricultural operations. <br />Previous discussions have explored, to a limited degree, the <br />District's interest in .holding and monitoring. agricultural easements <br />obtained by a County farmland preservation program. No <br />agreement has been reached through these discussions, however.:. <br />As the priorities for a farmland preservation program are developed <br />through the upcoming "New Consensus for Farmland" effort, <br />further discussion of the Soil and Water bistrict role could occur. If <br />desired, the Board of Commissioners could develop an agreement. <br />with. the District for the holding and monitoring of agricultural <br />easements. <br />A econd area for potential involvement with an outside <br />organization could be with the Orange Water and Sewer <br />Authority. OWASA, as the County's second-largest landowner, is <br />preparing to acquire an additional 1,200 acres in Cane Creek <br />watershed for watershed protection purposes. While there have <br />been no discussions with OWASA (beyond general questions on the <br />potential for parks on OWASA lands) to date, there may be <br />occasions where OWASA's interests in watershed protection may <br />coincide with the County's interests in preservation of critical <br />43 <br />