Land Resources
Chances are that your favorite farm in Amherst is protected. That is because the Town of Amherst is a leader in land conservation. In fact, with 2,000 acres of protected farmland, Amherst ranks second in the Commonwealth in its amount of protected open space. But that doesn’t mean ALL of Amherst’s farms are safe. Flat, well-drained soil that is largely free of rocks is not only good for farming, it is attractive to developers. About 500 more acres of Amherst’s best agricultural land is still at risk of being converted to subdivision development.
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Amherst remains committed to continuing efforts to conserve working farmland. According to Amherst’s Open Space and Recreation Plan drafted in 2003, there are many good reasons to protect our agricultural resources. Among them:
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Amherst remains committed to continuing efforts to conserve working farmland. According to Amherst’s Open Space and Recreation Plan drafted in 2003, there are many good reasons to protect our agricultural resources. Among them:
- Protected land is essential to Amherst’s appearance, economy, and well-being. Conservation land helps maintain the Town’s rural atmosphere, provides adequate and for traditional and modern forms of outdoor recreation, and protects important wildlife habitat for both game and non-game species. Protected farmland provides a permanent base on which present and future farm businesses depend, and helps farm support businesses maintain a significant presence in Amherst and adjacent towns.
- Traditional resource-based economic activities such as agriculture and forestry, and traditional forms of recreation such as fishing and hunting continue to play major roles in Amherst. The Conservation Commission and Conservation Department need to continue to help keep those traditions and their associated cultural practices viable by working closely with farmers and farmland owners, encouraging the farm economy, carrying out ecologically sound forest and open land wildlife habitat management on Town watershed lands in 4 towns, and renting out fields for farm production and community gardening.
- Setting aside conservation land and farmland in outlying areas of Town is 1 aspect of Amherst’s long-established planning goal - to direct new growth toward existing developed centers. This preserves Amherst’s historic pattern of development (village centers separated by open land) and reduces the need for continual expansion of expensive systems of public utilities and services.