Cassano Alerts Farmers of New State Grants for Farm Land Restoration

State Sen. Steve Cassano, D-Manchester, is informing farmers in central Connecticut about a new and little-known state grant - passed as part of October’s special session on jobs - that offers millions of dollars for farmers to restore and preserve Connecticut’s invaluable farmland.

Cassano is mailing letters to farmers in his 4th Senate District towns of Glastonbury, Bolton, Manchester and Marlborough with information regarding Connecticut’s new, $20 million Farmland Restoration Program. Funding for the program was approved on a bipartisan and near-unanimous vote during the Oct. 26, 2011 special legislative session regarding Connecticut jobs and its economy. Under the program, each farm can qualify for up to $20,000; as many as 250 Connecticutfarmers could be served.

“Everybody’s been talking about all of the small-business aid we passed in October, but you’ve got to remember we’ve also got 12,000 people working in agriculture and we’ve taken steps to help them too,” Cassano said. “Farms in Connecticut aren’t just an economic benefit. Roadside stands and pumpkin patches and pick-your-own fields attract tourists, open fields support clean water and bird breeding, and all of it contributes to the high quality of life we have here in Connecticut. That has got to be protected and maintained, and these restoration grants will help farmers do that.”

About 13 percent of Connecticut’s total land area is devoted to agriculture; most of that is in the nursery, greenhouse or sod industry (49 percent) followed by milk and dairy products, tobacco, poultry and eggs, fruits, and vegetables. Despite its small size, Connecticut ranked third in New England in agriculture sales in 2007 with $551 million.

The new restoration program provides matching grants of up to $20,000 for restoration activities that increase Connecticut’s farmland base for agriculture, with an emphasis on important farmland soils and on human and livestock food production. The state Department of Agriculture will give priority to projects targeting the production of fruits and vegetables but will also consider livestock and livestock feed second.

Farmers can use the grants for a variety of restoration treatments, including clearing and removal of trees, stumps, stones, and brush to create or restore agricultural use; installation of resource protection barriers to protect crop fields on restoration areas; restoration of shellfish beds or aquaculture ponds; and removal of invasive plants and hedgerow management for reclamation of overgrown fields, pastures, and meadows.