Article VIII - Agricultural Conservation Easements

45-41. Agricultural Conservation Easement Program.
  1. Purpose. Preserving the County’s agricultural lands in a manner that directs and accommodates growth and development is a high priority for County residents. To this end, the County establishes the following goals:
    1. To permanently protect and conserve those land in the County best suited for agricultural uses;
    2. To identify and harmonize policies of government at all levels which may conflict with the goal of protection of farmland;
    3. To reduce land use conflicts between agricultural and other land uses; and
    4. To promote agriculture as an integral part of the County’s economy.
  2. The Henderson County Soil and Water Conservation District staff and the Farmland Preservation Coordinator shall make recommendations to the Agricultural Advisory Board on selecting properties for the purchase and/or donation of agricultural conservation easements. Subject to the availability of local, state, and federal funding, the Henderson County Soil and Water Conservation District may acquire or support the acquisition of agricultural conservation easements consistent with this ordinance. It may seek assistance from any appropriate qualified conservation organization.
45-42. Purchase or Seeking Funding for Agricultural Conservation Easements.
  1. General. Subject to the availability of funds, the County may purchase or facilitate the purchase of agricultural conservation easements for agricultural and/or forestry lands. All applications for the purchase of agricultural conservation easements will be evaluated based on a ranking system. Applications may be ranked based on various site factors determined by the Henderson County Soil and Water Conservation District staff and Farmland Preservation Coordinator. Agricultural conservation easements may be purchased in accordance with the ranking of agricultural properties and the availability of funding.
  2. Description. The purchase of agricultural conservation easements is legally binding, restricting the owners and future owners to agricultural and/or forestry land use. The agricultural conservation easements will be held by either Henderson County, the Henderson County Soil and Water Conservation District, Cooperative Extension, or in public trust by a qualified conservation organization. Agricultural conservation easements will be in perpetuity and compliance with the North Carolina Conservation and Historic Preservation Agreements Act and applicable federal and state laws.
  3. Authority. Henderson County may apply for grant funding for its agricultural preservation program. The County may enter into cooperative agreements with a qualified conservation organization, the United States Department of Agriculture Natural Resource Conservation Service (USDA NRCS), the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Sciences Agricultural Development & Farmland Preservation Trust Fund (NCDA&CS, ADFPTF) or other agencies to facilitate the agricultural conservation easement purchase.
  4. Minimum eligibility criteria. There is no minimum acreage eligibility requirement to apply, but grant funding sources may have minimum acreage criteria.
  5. Application procedure. An application must be submitted to the Henderson County Soil and Water Conservation District staff, Farmland Preservation Coordinator, or its designee. Applications will be accepted year-round, reviewed, and ranked for funding during two (2) annual reviews held six (6) months apart.
  6. Review and ranking of applications. The Henderson County Soil and Water Conservation District staff and the Farmland Preservation Coordinator are responsible for developing and maintaining a system to rank and evaluate projects fairly and impartially. The agricultural preservation ranking system will be used to rank and prioritize applications received from landowners seeking the purchase of an agricultural conservation easement. The Farmland Preservation Coordinator, in coordination with the Henderson County Soil and Water Conservation District staff, will rank each application and present it to the Agricultural Advisory Board for approval.
45-43. Donation of Agricultural Conservation Easements.
  1. General. Henderson County may accept a voluntary donation of agricultural conservation easements or work with partners to facilitate these donations.
  2. Description. Donating agricultural conservation easements is legally binding, restricting owners and future owners to agricultural and/or forestry land use. The agricultural conservation easements will be held by either Henderson County or the Henderson County Soil and Water Conservation District or in public trust by a qualified conservation organization. They will be in perpetuity and compliance with the North Carolina Conservation and Historic Preservation Agreements Act and applicable federal and state laws.
  3. Minimum eligibility criteria. There is no minimum acreage eligibility requirement to apply.
  4. Application procedure. Upon contact by a landowner, a meeting will be set with the Henderson County Soil and Water Conservation District staff and the Farmland Preservation Coordinator or its designee to discuss the donation of an agricultural conservation easement.
  5. Funding. Any application seeking funding shall be ranked under 45-87.
45-44. Baseline Documentation and Monitoring.
  1. Baseline documentation purpose. This policy establishes the procedure for collecting, compiling, and storing baseline documentation for agricultural conservation easements managed by Henderson County, the Henderson County Soil and Water Conservation District, or a qualified conservation organization. The County must have baseline documentation for all properties it protects. This information establishes the condition of a property at the time of easement acquisition or donation, allowing comparisons with findings during subsequent monitoring events.
  2. Baseline data collection. The volume and specificity of the information included in the baseline documentation report may vary depending on the easement terms and the property's conservation objectives. Henderson County’s policy is that the Henderson County Soil and Water Conservation District staff, the Farmland Preservation Coordinator, or their designee will collect baseline data.
  3. Baseline data collected during a site visit will generally include:
    1. Boundary photos as well as photos of special features, structures, and other improvements and/or human modifications.
    2. Data and locations on a map of each photo, special feature, structure, and other improvements (Global Positioning System (GPS) is preferred);
    3. Other natural resource information documenting the conservation values of the site, such as soil maps, land cover data, natural community descriptions, ecological data, and other relevant agricultural or forestry information.
  4. The easement grantee shall keep a copy of the baseline documentation report on file, which the landowner must review prior to closing.
  5. Monitoring purpose. To protect conservation values and maintain safety on its fee simple properties, the Henderson County Soil and Water Conservation District staff, the Farmland Preservation Coordinator, or its designee will regularly monitor and maintain detailed records of inspections, problems on the property, and actions taken to address such issues.
    1. Monitoring personnel. The easement holder is responsible for overall monitoring supervision, which will be coordinated with the Henderson County Soil and Water Conservation District staff and the Farmland Preservation Coordinator. 
    2. Monitoring procedure. Comprehensive monitoring shall be performed at least annually, with additional monitoring visits and reports to be generated as needed. Property owners will be notified prior to the scheduled monitoring visit.
45-45. Miscellaneous.
  1. Severability. If any section, subsection, clause, phrase, or portion of this Article is for any reason found invalid or unconstitutional by any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this Article.
  2. Conflict with other ordinances and statutes. Whenever the provisions of this Article conflict with other ordinances of Henderson County, the provisions of those other ordinances shall govern. Whenever the provisions of any federal or state statute conflict with this Article, the provisions of such federal or state statute shall govern. The sole remedy for a land use not complying with this Article shall result in a civil action and removal of the non-qualifying land from the Henderson County Voluntary Agricultural District or Enhanced Agricultural District program. Recreational use of land that does not interfere with agricultural uses as defined in N.C. Gen. Stat. §106-581.1 shall not be considered non-compliant with this Article unless otherwise stated in the agricultural conservation agreement.
  3. Amendments. This ordinance and its articles may be amended by the Board of Commissioners.
45-46 Through 45-99 (Reserved).