The loss of agricultural land in nwst areas of Massachusetts will undoub- 

 tedly continue, because the value of land for development purposes is greater 

 than its value for agricultural purposes. The economic incentive to sell the 

 farm for non-agricultural uses is often too tempting for a farmer to resist, or 

 the land is simply just too expensive for the farmer's children or neighboring 

 farmers to purchase. It is this disparity in land value for development versus 

 agriculture that makes the Commonwealth's Agricultural Preservation Restriction 

 (APR) Program work. 



APR Program Objectives 



The main objective of the Agricultural Preservation Restriction Program is 

 to protect productive farmland through the purchase of deed restrictions and 

 revitalize the agricultural industry by making land more affordable to farmers 

 and their operations more financially secure. The specific goals of the Program 

 include the following: 



1. To save the best and most productive agricultural land remaining in the 

 Commonwealth and; 



2. To provide an opportunity for farmers to purchase farmland at affordable 

 prices and; 



3. To help farmland owners overcome estate planning problems and to address 

 other personal ownership problems such as age, health, retirement and; 



4. To release the equity "locked-up" in the land and therefore provide working 

 capital to enable farm operations to become more financially stable and; 



5. If other program objectives are met, to protect scenic open space and 

 environmentally sensitive lands and; 



6. To develop a positive attitude among farmers, agri businessmen, landowners 

 and urban residents that agriculture in Massachusetts makes an important 

 contribution to the state's economy, food supply and rural character. 



Status of Farms Already Protected 



All of the farms that are currently in the APR Program are checked from 

 time to time for compliance with the terms of the Preservation Restriction. At 

 this time, none of the farms have been cited for violation of the restriction, 

 and all of the land currently protected remains in active agricultural use. 



During the summer of 1982 the Land Use Bureau staff conducted a research 

 project on the status of the protected farms in terms of land use, ownership, 

 types of farm improvements, and changes in the farm operation, with the objec- 

 tive of determining how the APR monies were being spent and how the preservation 

 restriction affected the farm. A total of thirty farms were visited and inter- 

 views held with the owners. The following conclusions and statistics were drawn 

 from these field visits. 



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