Deadline: 15-Feb-22
The Cheshire County Conservation District (CCCD) is seeking applications for the New Hampshire (NH) Farm Future Fund to provide funding for farm viability planning in concert with the conservation of important agricultural soils.
This program will leverage the singular opportunity of putting a conservation easement on farmland to also invest in the future viability of the farm business. The goal of this fund is to ensure that farmland is conserved, productive, and available for future generations.
Categories
Funding is available to support activities in two broad categories:
- financial assistance to offset costs associated with farmland conservation projects and
- technical assistance to support farm business viability and succession planning.
Priorities
Priority will be given to projects that:
- conserve important farmland soils (local, state, and prime) with permanent land protection through the acquisition of a fee interest or a permanent conservation easement,
- have a signed purchase and sales agreement on an agricultural easement or fee owned land,
- have a strong commitment from the partnering farm to engage and seek meaningful results from the technical assistance that will be provided,
- have conducted a minimum of one joint development Discovery Meeting with the land trust, farm partner, NHCLF, and LFG to identify clear goals for the technical assistance requested, and/or
- have a high imminence of threat (e.g. the farm is under financial duress, the land is highly developable, the owner has contemplated selling to a developer or been approached by developer(s), etc.).
Funding Information
There is $100,000 available in the 2022 funding cycle. Awards no greater than $20,000 will be considered. Program administrators reserve the right to offer funding to selected projects at an amount less/or more than requested in the application budget.
Eligible Projects
New Hampshire farmland conservation projects where there is a strong stated commitment from a project Farm Partner. The Farm Partner is the farmer/landowner of the agricultural resource who has agreed to partner with the land trust to conserve the land and strive to keep it productive and profitable. The Farm Partner is required to be engaged and interested in participating in farm viability and/or land transfer planning. The Farm Partner will work with the land trust, LFG, and the NHCLF to define their interests, goals, and desired outcomes in the application for funding. This commitment must be addressed in a Farm Partner Letter as part of the application package.
Project Farm Partners could exist in the following scenarios:
- farmer who wishes to continue farming but needs business viability assistance,
- farmer who wishes the transfer the farm to the next generation but needs succession planning assistance, or
- farmland owned by a non-farming landowner who wishes to lease and/or sell the property to a farmer.
Eligibility Criteria
Nonprofit tax exempt 501(c)(3) organizations that have land conservation as their primary function and are actively working to conserve farmland in the state of New Hampshire.
For more information, visit http://www.cheshireconservation.org/nhfarmfuturefund