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Preserving
Wilderness and Farm Land
Tennessee's Land Preservation Movement
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Butterfly Hollow Farm ____ The Path Leading Us Here ____ How The Farm Got Its Name ____ Restoring the Old Farmhouse ____ Where The Beefalo Roam ____ Saddle Up The Horses ____ Saving Wilderness and Farm Land ____ Farm Journals ____ Sharing The Farm ____ Guest Book ____ Site Map ____ |
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Between
1991 and 1997 Tennessee lost 300,000 acres worth of productive land
forever. The twelve counties that make up the Nashville Basin,
which includes Smith County, have been declared the 12th most threatened
agricultural area in the entire U.S.A. Here at home a
random sampling of our local paper shows that our county is still
auctioning and subdividing 1000 acres per month. With only 150,000
or so left...its doesn't take a math scientist to add up the reality
of being without farmland in Smith county in about 10 years!! Tennessee is far from being the leader in the land preservation movement that is working its way around the country. But the ball is finally rolling, laws are being formed, land trusts are being created and the future of our Tennessee farm and wilderness land is looking a bit brighter. In 1995 Tennessee created a program called Agricultural Districts which allows landowners to voluntarily join together and form communities of farmland. If this program develops like it has in other states, land owners will be required to be in a district before they will be considered for other tax incentives and land preservation funds. Tennessee has also recently passed a new Law that is going to require every county in the state to create growth plans which must include agriculture and open spaces. Farmers, landowners and concerned citizens have also started taking this issue to action and are forming local, countywide and state land trusts, which are non-profit environmental organizations. These entities are able to purchase and manage conservation easements as well as tap into the millions federal funds that are available for land preservation. One of the newest groups in our state in the Tennessee Land Trust out of Memphis. Here at home the word is slowly starting to spread around. The county's first Agricultural District has formed and others are in the works. I've written a dozen articles or so about this issue in our local paper and plan to continue sharing what I've learned. I've also started meeting with locals that have expressed interest in either forming an Agricultural district in their community or want to get involved in some form of community alliance for land preservation. Once we have been informed and educated we can no longer plead innocence or ignorance to this issue. The time is right. People are talking, groups are forming, and the moment is upon us for the people of Tennessee to join together in the effort to preserve, protect and pass on this wonderful home of ours.
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info@butterflyhollow.com
Butterfly
Hollow
Gordonsville,
TN 38563