AG 2006 12 18 - Laserfiche WebLink

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than age 65 is times greater than the number of farmers under 35.18 This indicates that a large transition will take place over the next 20 years, and with fewer younger farmers available to take over production on these farms, many may fall out of production and be divided up and sold through estate settlement processes. Additionally, generations of farming expertise may be lost, an invaluable asset to the local agricultural economy, C. Rising Property Values and Taxes: As suburban development increases in rural areas, land prices invariably increase, which has been the case in County, Increasing land prices restrict a farmer's ability to purchase more land on which to operate, thus restricting his or her flexibility to change their agricultural operation or otherwise produce more to increase their income. D. Conflicts with Non-farmer Neighbors. County farmers have indicated that conflicts with non-farming neighbors are increasing, As residential development moves to the farm's edge, new neighbors find themselves faced with the realities of agricultural production processes: dust, livestock smells, noise from machinery, slow moving farm equipment on roadways, Complaints create a hostile operating environment, can end up in costly litigation, and at worst, can result in curtailing a farmer's ability to operate his or her farm, E. Loss of Local Farm Services. As noted above, a significant amount of County businesses support agriculture enterprises, and in turn count on agriculture as a large portion of their service base, As farms cease to operate, local businesses depending on that revenue close or relocate further away from agricultural production areas. With the loss of these support businesses, farmers incur rising costs due to delays in their own production due to the lack of an urgently needed service (such as tractor repair) that only a nearby business can provide in the critical amount of time, or they may have to travel further for needed services adding time and travel expenses to their operation. Additionally, farming is a unique business, and the loss of support businesses, particularly in the financial sector, means a drain from the county of service providers who understand the unique needs of agricultural producers. F. Fractured Infrastructure from Poorly-planned Residential Development. Time is a very important asset in agricultural production, The ability to achieve certain goals within certain windows of weather and season are critical to successful farming, Often these schedules are based on the farmer's reliance of corridors of transportation between fields, services and markets, As poorly-planned development encroaches into farming areas, these corridors between fields or other necessary destinations can be disrupted, increasing farmers travel time and operating costs. Also, increased traffic in these corridors imposes similar costs. 5 \-\ ~." ~