From the Farmland Center Front Porch

Keep “Clean Ohio”

Almost eight years ago voters passed the Clean Ohio Bond issue. This was a tremendous step forward in Ohio as $400 million dollars was set aside to invest in health and prosperity for the Buckeye state. Half of that money went toward to revitalizing contaminated or “brownfield” sites in our urban areas. The other half of the funding went to the “green” side and allocated money for open space preservation- $150 million, trail development- $25 million, and farmland preservation at $25 million.

On the farmland preservation side there were skeptics. Would farmers really sell development rights on their property, and forgo a potential economic windfall by selling for development so that their farms were permanently preserved? Well, history has proved those skeptics wrong.

Since the start of the program there have been over 1,600 applications from farmers to protect over 250,000 acres of Ohio farmland. To date Ohio has protected over 23,000 acres on 117 farms. We are just beginning to scratch the surface with money that fulfills less than 10% of farmland preservation demand. In a state that is second in the nation in the loss of prime farmland the time to take action to protect our farmland and food security is now. Prime soil is the land best suited for growing food, and produces the highest yields with minimal inputs of energy and economic resources. Farming on prime farmland results in less damage to the environment.

Contrast the dramatic loss of high quality farmland with the growing interest and demand for locally grown and raised food. The number of farmers’ markets continues to rise across the state with the number of Northeast Ohio farmers markets growing by over 50% in just the past five years. While some estimates put the local food demand at approximately 20%, we are meeting less than 1% of that demand now. As we lose our farmland base we also lose the opportunity to meet that local food demand along with the health, environmental, energy, economic and taste benefits that come from foods grown close to home.

We face many challenges in Ohio- battles for environmental quality, economic concerns, and health issues to name a few. Even though it seems hard to get a handle on these challenging issues there is something that you can do to make a change. Your support is needed for Clean Ohio. Come to one of the two Northeast Ohio Clean Ohio Fund meetings in Cleveland or Cuyahoga Falls. Details can be found here.

As we continue to invest in Clean Ohio we are helping farmers protect the land that feeds us. Keeping Ohio farmland protected will help to insure that healthy local food choices are available close to home, for us – and for our children.