While it may be true that the land conservation movement has faced tough times before, particularly on the Eastern Shore, according to Steve Kline, the president of the Eastern Shore Land Conservancy, it’s hard to remember a more dire moment for preserving essential landscapes. The combination of a significant drop in state funding for such critical programs like Maryland’s Open Space, coupled with Annapolis’s recent move to supersede local government control of solar farm permitting, will make it more difficult than ever before for organizations and individuals to preserve the Eastern Shore’s most important assets; its rich agricultural soil.
During our annual check-in with Steve, he discusses these real threats to land conservation and the sobering outlook for the Mid-Shore, highlighting the short-term challenges in the region’s ongoing battle to preserve its heritage.
This video is approximately 15 minutes in length. For more information about the Eastern Shore Land Conservancy or to make a donation, please visit their website here.
John says
Local land control used to mean that the farmer/owner controlled the land within the guidelines of zoning laws. Now it seems to mean that the control rests with the residents and tourists who drive by and want to see pretty fields, cows (heaven forbid, chickens) and soybeans regardless of the value generated by crop farming. The state of Maryland has never funded the true value of land lost to the farmer through a preservation easement.