Central Florida Ranchers Preserve More than 3,700 Acres of Environmentally Sensitive Working Land
From the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services:
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The Governor and Cabinet today unanimously approved the preservation of more than 3,700 acres of agricultural land in Osceola County from development, while allowing the land and agriculture operations to continue to contribute to Florida’s economy. The purchases are a part of the Rural and Family Lands Protection Program, which partners with Florida’s farmers and ranchers in the path of development to preserve active agricultural operations, and their immense environmental benefits, through cost-effective conservation easements.
The perpetual conservation easements will preserve 528 acres of the Camp Lonesome ranch and 3,245 acres of Adams Ranch, both in Osceola County. The Adams Ranch conservation easement is the largest single easement in the program’s history and increases the total land preserved by the program to 18,378 acres.
“By partnering with Florida’s farmers and ranchers, we can preserve these invaluable pieces of our rural economy and our world-renowned ecosystem for future generations,” said Commissioner of Agriculture Adam H. Putnam. “With the unanimous approval of these conservation easements today, the Rural and Family Lands Protection Program now preserves more than 18,300 acres of Florida’s working agricultural lands.”
Adams Ranch was founded in 1937 and is a fourth-generation cattle business. The ranch is within the South Florida Water Management District’s Northern Everglades & Estuaries Protection Program area and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services’ Everglades Headwaters National Wildlife Refuge and Conservation Area. The property encompasses a large area of native “dry prairie” range and wetland marshes, as well as improved rangelands. Additionally, Adams Ranch was the winner of the Sustainable Rancher Award in 2014, as well as the Agricultural Environmental Leadership Award and the Landowner of the Year Award
Camp Lonesome is a cow-calf operation located in central Osceola County. The ranch is also within the South Florida Water Management District’s Northern Everglades & Estuaries Protection Program area and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services’ Everglades Headwaters National Wildlife Refuge and Conservation Area. This property is comprised of managed native flatwoods and palmetto dry prairie, as well as large cypress-dominated swamp and smaller marshes. The native range and pastures are well managed with routine use of prescribed fire, which has produced rich groundcover that supports a diverse mix of rare species, including: gopher frog, Florida grasshopper sparrow, hooded pitcher plant, and burrowing owls.
The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services created the Rural and Family Lands Protection Program in 2001 and has acquired 24 perpetual easements totaling 18,378 acres. The easements protect working agricultural lands threatened by other uses, such as residential and commercial development.
The goals of the program include:
• Protecting valuable agricultural lands;
• Creating conservation easements that ensure sustainable agricultural practices;
• Preventing conversion to non-agricultural land uses in the rural base of Florida; and
• Helping to protect natural resources in conjunction with these agricultural operations.
Florida agriculture has an overall economic impact estimated at more than $123 billion annually, making it the state’s second largest industry. The agriculture industry supports more than 2 million jobs in Florida.
More information on the Rural and Family Lands Protection Program is available here.
For more information about the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, visit FreshFromFlorida.com.