Agricultural zoning is a
land management tool that refers to local
zoning
Zoning is a method of urban planning in which a municipality or other tier of government divides land into areas called zones, each of which has a set of regulations for new development that differs from other zones. Zones may be defined for a si ...
designations made by
local jurisdictions that are intended to protect farmland and farming activities from incompatible
land uses. Agricultural zoning can specify many factors, such as the uses allowed, minimum lot size, the number of nonfarm dwellings allowed, or the size of a buffer separating farm and nonfarm properties. Some jurisdictions further subdivide agricultural zones to distinguish
industrial farming
Industrial agriculture is a form of modern farming that refers to the industrialized production of crops and animals and animal products like eggs or milk. The methods of industrial agriculture include innovation in agricultural machinery and far ...
from uses like rural residence farms and retirement farms on large lots.
One example of such zoning is the
Agricultural Reserve in
Montgomery County, Maryland
Montgomery County is the most populous county in the state of Maryland. As of the 2020 census, the county's population was 1,062,061, increasing by 9.3% from 2010. The county seat and largest municipality is Rockville, although the census-design ...
. The reserve was established in 1980 to preserve farmland and rural space.
See also
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Farmland protection
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Zoning in the United States
Zoning in the United States includes various land use laws falling under the police power rights of state governments and local governments to exercise authority over privately owned real property. Zoning laws in major cities originated with the ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Agricultural Zoning
Agricultural policy
Zoning
Agriculture in the United States