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Columbus County soil and water office outlines Voluntary Agricultural District program; 49 farms enrolled
Summary
Columbus County Soil & Water presented the voluntary agricultural districts (VAD) program to commissioners, explaining eligibility, conservation agreements, benefits and enrollment numbers; staff described an enhanced VAD option with longer-term commitments and noted funding and mapping tools that support applicants.
Morgan Hayes, director of the Columbus County Soil and Water Conservation District, laid out the county’s Voluntary Agricultural District (VAD) program at the Board of Commissioners meeting on May 19, describing eligibility rules, benefits for farmers and neighbors, and enrollment totals.
The VAD program, authorized by the North Carolina General Assembly, is intended to recognize and help preserve bona fide farms, reduce nuisance disputes and give landowners priority on certain state funding. “For a farm to qualify, it has to be considered a bona fide farm per the standard set up by GS 106-743 and GS 160D-903,” Hayes told the board, adding that farms must also be certified with the county’s NRCS for erosion-control practices when applicable and enter a 10-year conservation agreement.
Hayes said the conservation agreement filed for the VAD program is revocable during the 10-year term; she contrasted that with an “enhanced VAD” option under consideration, which would require a…
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