Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program – 2008 Farm Bill

Updated: 2/18/2011

The Farm and Ranch Land Protection Program (FRPP) provides matching funds to help purchase development rights to keep productive farm and ranch land in agricultural uses.  USDA provides funds to State, Tribal, or local governments and non-governmental organizations (eligible entities) to acquire conservation easements or other interests in land from landowners.  USDA provides up to 50 percent of the appraised fair market value of the conservation easement.  The eligible entities must provide at least half of the appraised fair market value of the conservation easement.

To qualify, the land must have fifty percent prime, unique, or important farmland soils; have a historic or archeological resource; or have land that supports the policy of a State or local farm and ranch land protection program.  The land must also: be part of a pending offer from a State, tribe, or local farmland protection program; be privately owned; have a conservation plan for highly erodible land; be large enough to sustain agricultural production; be accessible to markets for what the land produces; have adequate infrastructure and agricultural support services; and have surrounding parcels of land that can support long-term agricultural production.

Landowners must meet eligibility requirements for adjusted gross income and compliance with the highly erodible land and wetland conservation provisions of the Farm Bill. Proposals must be submitted by the eligible entities to the appropriate NRCS State Office on a continuous basis throughout the year.  The individual farms and ranches are evaluated and ranked individually on a predetermined date and funds are obligated to the eligible entities associated with the highest ranked farms and ranches in a cooperative agreement.

• National program information, fact sheets, and other information
• FRPP Rules, procedures, and forms specific to North Carolina

FRPP 2012 Program Guidance and Documents

These documents require Adobe Acrobat.

• 2012 FRPP Application Checklist (PDF, 822 KB)
• 2012 FRPP Entity Application (PDF, 52 KB)
• 2012 FRPP Parcel Application (PDF, 420 KB)
• 2012 FRPP Notice of Application Deadline (PDF, 287 KB)
• 2012 FRPP Parcel Ranking Sheet (PDF, 322 KB)

Program Contact

Mike Hinton, Assistant State Conservationist for Easements & Water Resources, 919-873-2103