Local farmers propose agricultural advisory committee to help preserve Madison County farmland

Russ Moon, who said he represents the county’s agricultural community, presented draft bylaws for a proposed Madison County Agricultural Advisory Committee and urged commissioners to consider establishing the group to advise on conservation easements, grant-seeking and land-use questions.

"This committee could help source factual information, with countywide perspective to advise you, the commissioners, on aggravated issues as they come up," Russ Moon said. He noted that the state recently set aside an initial $2,000,000 to fund conservation easements and warned that Georgia could lose roughly 800,000 acres of farmland over the next 15 years, a trend he said Madison County will likely face.

Commissioners and staff asked how similar committees have worked in neighboring counties; speakers referenced Carroll County’s long-running advisory body as a model. Commissioners emphasized the need for community volunteers and agreed staff would work with committee organizers to refine membership and duties before returning a formal proposal to the board.

The proposal would not itself collect tax dollars, Moon said; instead, he described the committee’s role as facilitating grants and local fundraising to match state programs. Commissioners asked organizers to supply a final draft for board review and to coordinate with county staff on nominee selection.

The item concluded with a commitment from the board to work with organizers and return a refined draft to a future meeting.