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Zoning Guidelines for Permitting Domestic Livestock Uses
2004This report analyzes the potential impacts of keeping livestock in residential areas and provides a list of model zoning definitions and specific standards. -
Urban Chicken Ownership in Four U.S. Cities
2010by: USDAThis USDA report studied the keeping of backyard chickens in four U.S. metro areas. -
Cary, NC, Code of Ordinances
Updated June 2021These regulations belong to the Group Housing and Urban Livestock collections. -
Tampa, FL, Code of Ordinances
Updated July 2022This regulation belongs to the Active Transportation, Biophilic Planning, and Urban Livestock collections. -
Tucson, AZ, Codified Ordinances
Updated July 2022The city's Codified Ordinances belongs to the Biophilic Planning, Content-Neutral Sign Regulation, Downtown Revitalization, Historic Preservation, Marijuana-Related Uses, Scenic View Protection, Solar Energy, Urban Heat Resilience, and Urban Livestock collections. -
Issaquah, WA, Municipal Code
Updated August 2019This collection belongs to the Green Building, Solar Energy, and Urban Livestock collections. -
Cedar Rapids, IA, Municipal Code
Updated January 2019This regulation belongs to the Historic Preservation, Solar Energy, and Urban Livestock collections. -
Lakewood, CO, Zoning Ordinance
Updated July 2019These regulations belong to the Solar Energy and Urban Livestock collections. -
Amherst Town, NY, Farmland Protection & Agricultural Development Plan
Adopted June 2021This functional plan presents strategies for farmland protection and agricultural development. -
Buncombe County, NC, Farmland Protection Plan
Updated June 2020This functional plan provides recommendations to help protect prime farmland and support the agricultural sector in Buncombe County, recognizing that while the county has successfully preserved farmland over the years, it has experienced a decline in farm economic activity. -
Orange County, NY, Agricultural and Farmland Protection Plan
Adopted January 2015This functional plan provides strategies to guide the county's agricultural and farmland protection efforts. -
Greenwich Township, NJ, Farmland Preservation Plan Element
Adopted January 2011This functional plan addresses farmland preservation within the jurisdiction. -
Oneida County, NY, Agriculture and Farmland Protection Plan
Adopted June 2017This functional plan presents goals and strategies for agricultural and farmland protection within the county. -
Combating the Climate Crisis Through Conservation
National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition, July 10, 2020This blog post discusses the changes in two of the country's land conservation programs under the Agriculture Resilience Act and how these changes can help address climate change concerns in working farmland. -
Defining the Role of Conservation in Agricultural Conservation Easements
Ecology Law Quarterly, 44(3): 627-680, December 2017by: Jess PhelpsThis article addresses the conflicts between agricultural conservation easements and farmers' needs to adjust future agricultural practices and business conditions. -
Preserving and Promoting Agricultural Activities in the Peri-Urban Space
University of Manitoba Press, March 2017by: Nicolas BrunetThis article discusses the preservation of agricultural land and agricultural activities in areas that are subject to the pressures of urban development. -
Farms Under Threat: The State of the States
May 2020This interactive map provides information on the status of agricultural land in the United States. -
A Brief Guide to the Impacts of Climate Change on Food Production
Yale Climate Connections, September 18, 2019by: Daisy SimmonsThis blog post explores the impacts of climate change on agricultural production and land. -
Climate Change and Agriculture: A Perfect Storm in Farm Country
The Union of Concerned Scientists, March 20, 2019This blog post explores the impacts that the combination of climate change and inadequate farming practices has on the agriculture industry. -
Farmland Protection Policy Act
June 2021This fact sheet gives an overview of the Farmland Protection Policy Act (FPPA), which is part of the 1981 Farm Bill and addresses the need to minimize the degree to which federal projects contribute to the conversion of farmland to other uses. -
Protecting California Farmland and Ranchland
May 2020This fact sheet gives an overview of California's Sustainable Agricultural Lands Conservation Program (SALC), a program established to help protect the state farmland and ranchland. -
Whitman County, WA, Code of Ordinances
Updated April 2021The county's zoning code addresses farmland protection. -
West Lampeter, PA, Municipal Code
Updated November 2020The township’s zoning ordinance addresses farmland protection. -
Smart Solar Siting Principles and Examples of Land Use Laws that Support Renewable Energy While Protecting Farmland
May 2019This briefing paper is designed to help planners draft land-use and development regulations that balance solar development and farmland preservation goals. -
Climate Change and Land
2019by: Valérie Masson-Delmotte, Hans-Otto Pörtner, Jim SkeaThis report addresses the impacts of climate change on land, including the main challenges related to land-use change: land degradation, increased desertification, and food security. -
California Purchase of Agricultural Conservation Easement Programs
March 2021by: Kayla DonovanThis report explores and compares some of California's purchase of agricultural conservation easement (PACE) programs, all efforts to preserve farmland in the state. -
Smart Solar Siting for New England
September 2020This briefing paper is designed to help local officials and planners to protect farmland while encouraging solar energy development. -
An Analysis of the Economic Impact of Pennsylvania’s Farmland Preservation Program
September 2019by: Tom DanielsThis report sought to understand the impacts Pennsylvania's long-standing farmland preservation programs have on the agricultural industry and the state's and counties' economies. -
Waseca, MN, Code of Ordinances
Updated November 2020The city’s subdivision ordinance addresses farmland protection. -
Benefits of Farmland Conservation in California
2015This briefing paper explores the benefits that farmland preservation efforts in California have to both society and the environment. -
Shrewsbury, PA, Zoning Ordinance
Updated October 2021The township’s zoning code addresses farmland protection through farm-friendly zoning provisions, including transfer of development rights and sliding-scale zoning. -
Surry County, VA, Code of Ordinances
Updated July 2021The county’s zoning ordinance addresses farmland protection. -
Sussex County, DE, County Code
Updated September 2021The county’s subdivision ordinance addresses agricultural protections for farmland. -
Durham County, NC, Agricultural Development and Farmland Preservation Plan
Adopted December 2009This functional plan addresses the emergence of a diverse small farm sector focused on local marketing opportunities and seeks to protect and promote farming opportunities to meet local market demand. -
Guilford County, NC, 2020 Farmland Protection Plan
Updated June 2011This functional plan focuses on the importance of preserving the local agricultural economy, as well as the importance of preserving rural heritage and eating locally. -
Monmouth County, NJ, Farmland Preservation Plan
Adopted April 2008The functional plan focuses on farmland preservation in the context of land use and growth management. -
Livingston County, NY, Agricultural and Farmland Protection Plan
Adopted July 2006This functional plan addresses farmland protection and takes an economic development approach: it focuses on the importance of encouraging sector growth and enterprise development while supporting county and local farmland protection efforts. -
Genesee County, NY, Agricultural and Farmland Protection Plan
Updated May 2017This functional plan includes goals for farmland protection in the county. -
Kenosha County, WI, A Farmland Preservation Plan for Kenosha County, Wisconsin
Adopted November 2013This functional plan addresses farmland preservation for Kenosha County, WI. -
Atlantic County, NJ, Farmland Preservation Plan
Updated May 2017This functional plan addresses farmland protection and starts by offering an overview of the county’s agricultural land base and farming industry and exploring the local land use planning context. -
Burlington County, NJ, Comprehensive Farmland Preservation Plan
Adopted December 2008This functional plan includes a goal to increase the acreage of farmland protected in the county. -
Santa Barbara County, CA, Final Negative Declaration: Agricultural Buffer Ordinance
Report to Board of Supervisors, September 7, 2012This staff report addresses farmland protection through agricultural buffers and represents the final negative declaration for environmental impacts of a proposed agricultural buffer ordinance. -
Henderson County, NC, 2020 Comprehensive Plan
Updated September 2009The county’s comprehensive plan addresses farmland protection in an Agricultural Element that focuses on supporting the agricultural industry and protecting the farmland that is key to a thriving agricultural economy. -
Davis, CA, General Plan
Updated January 2007The city’s general plan addresses farmland protection in its Agriculture, Soils, and Minerals chapter. -
Batavia, NY, Comprehensive Plan
Updated April 2017The town’s comprehensive plan addresses farmland protection and offers recommendations and tools to help preserve agricultural resources and industry. -
Boone County, IL, Comprehensive Plan
Adopted December 2019The county’s comprehensive plan addresses farmland protection and presents agriculture as one of the overarching thems of the plan. -
Model Municipal Ordinance: Establishment of an Agricultural Advisory Committee
November 2009This model ordinance establishes a process for creating a municipal agricultural advisory committee to help plan for the protection of agricultural resources. -
The Future of Farming on the Urban Edge: Insights from Fifteen U.S. Counties About Farmland Protection and Farm Viability
Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development 1(2): 59–75, 2010by: Kate Clancy, Lydia Oberholzer, J. Dixon EsseksThis article surveyed landowners in fifteen (15) U.S. counties to examine the opportunities and challenges faced by farmers in urban-edge areas. -
The National Assessment of Agricultural Easement Programs
December 2006by: Alvin Sokolow, Anita ZurbruggThis web page provides access to a four-report series that reviews the progress and experiences of 46 leading agricultural conservation easement programs in 15 states. -
Agricultural Buffers at the Rural-Urban Fringe: An Examination of Approval by Farmers, Residents, and Academics in the Midwestern United States
Landscape and Urban Planning 69: 299–313, 2004by: William Sullivan, Olin Anderson, Sarah LovellThis article explores whether agricultural buffers can help mediate conflicts between farmlands and residential areas on the rural-urban fringe.