Planning & Technical Assistance
Federal Government
State Government
Organizations
Data Sources
Other Reading Materials

• Open Space & Recreation Plans Guidelines
  www.state.nj.us/dep/greenacres/osrpg.htm
  These guidelines are provided to assist local governments in preparing open space and recreation plans ("OSRP"). They outline the OSRP items that are needed to participate in the Green Acres Local Government Funding Planning Incentive ("PI") funding category. The PI category awards 50% grant and 50% loan funding to a local government to acquire lands identified in its OSRP. A qualifying local government must also have established and be collecting an open space tax, pursuant to P.L. 1997, Chapter 24.

• Land and Water Conservation Fund Grants to States (DOI/National Park Service)
  www.doi.gov/news/states/
  The Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) uses offshore oil leasing revenues to support the creation of state and local park and recreation areas that guarantee perpetual public outdoor recreation opportunities. LWCF grant funds may be used for state planning and for the acquisition and development of state and local facilities that provide active and/or passive recreation opportunities. Contacts: Department of the Interior, National Park Service, Recreation Programs, 202-565-1200
• Eastman Kodak American Greenways Awards and Grants (Eastman Kodak, The Conservation Fund, and the National Geographic Society)
  www.conservationfund.org/
  Through this partnership, funding is available for small grants to stimulate the planning and design of greenways in communities throughout America. Contacts: The Conservation Fund, 703-525-6300
• Bring Back the Natives Grant Program (National Fish and Wildlife Foundation)
  www.nfwf.org/
  This program provides funds to restore damaged or degraded riverine habitats and native aquatic species through watershed restoration and improved land management. Funding is provided by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Bureau of Reclamation (BOR), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), USDA Forest Service (FS), and National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF). Contacts: National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, 202-857-0166
• Farmland Protection Program (USDA)
  www.nrcs.usda.gov/
  This program provides funds to help purchase development rights to keep productive farmland in agricultural uses. Working through existing programs, USDA joins with state, tribal, or local governments to acquire conservation easements or other interests from landowners. Contacts: NRCS, the Farm Service Agency, Extension Service, or local conservation district can provide more information

• State Agriculture Development Committee
  www.state.nj.us/agriculture/sadc/sadc.htm
• County Agricultural Development Board
  www.state.nj.us/agriculture/sadc/countyboards.htm
• State Development and Redevelopment Plan
  www.njstateplan.com/

• Trust for Public Land (www.tpl.org/) is a nonprofit land conservation organization working with government, business, and community groups to acquire and preserve open space to serve human needs, share knowledge of nonprofit land acquisition, and pioneer methods of land conservation and sustainable land use.
• The Nature Conservancy (tnc.org), one of the largest and best known land trust organizations, protects land worldwide.
• New Jersey Conservation Foundation
  njconservation.org
• Association of New Jersey Environmental Commissions
  www.anjec.org
• American Farmland Trust
  www.aft.org
• Land Trust Alliance (www.lta.org/) is a national umbrella organization for land trusts that serves as an educator, coordinator, leader, and advisor to help land trusts save more threatened natural areas and open land. Many active and successful independent land trusts exist on the local, state and regional levels. The Land Trust Alliance website provides a listing of land trusts by state (http://www.lta.org/findlandtrust/index.html).
• American Land Conservancy (www.alcnet.org/) is a national, non-profit organization that works in close partnership with communities, private landowners, local land trusts, public lands agencies, and elected officials to create effective conservation solutions for threatened land and water resources.

• US Dept of Ag, Natural Resources Conservation Service
  www.nrcs.usda.gov/
  www.nj.nrcs.usda.gov/
• Center for Remote Sensing and Spatial Analysis
  www.crssa.rutgers.edu/projects/lc/
• National Agriculture Statistics Service
  www.nass.usda.gov/census/

• Daniels, Tom and Deborah Bowers, Holding Our Ground: Protecting America's Farms and Farmland, Washington, D.C.: Island Press, 1997.
• American Farmland Trust, Saving American Farmland: What Works,
• Gottsegen, Amanda J., Planning for Transfer of Development Rights: A Handbook for New Jersey Municipalities, Burlington County Board of Chosen Freeholders, 1992.
• Arendt, Randall, Rural by Design, Chicago: American Planning Association, 1994.
• Guiding Growth: Building Better Communities and Protecting Our Countryside, Pennsylvania Environmental Council, Chapter 7.1 (Agricultural Land Protection), 1993.
• Hasse, John and Lathrop, "Measuring Urban Growth in New Jersey," Walton Center for Remote Sensing and Spatial Analysis, Rutgers University, 2001.
  www.crssa.rutgers.edu/projects/lc/urbangrowth/nj_urban_growth.pdf
• Preserving Natural Resources Through Local Environmental Laws: A Guidebook for Local Governments, Pace University School of Law ­ Land Use Law Center, Chapter IV (Cluster Development Ordinance), 2001.
• Pruetz, Rick, Saved by Development: Preserving Environmental Areas, Farmland and Historic Landmarks with Transfer of Development Rights, California: Arje Press, 1997.
• Thompson, Edward, "Hybrid Farmland Protection Programs: A New Paradigm for Growth Management", Environmental Law and Policy Review, William and Mary School of Law, Fall 1999, vol. 23, no. 3
• Defining Prime Agricultural Land and Methods of Protection
  www.agry.purdue.edu/landuse/prime.htm
  Purdue Cooperative Extension Service, 1996.
• Farmland Protection Action Guide: 24 Strategies for California
  www.ilsg.org/doc.asp?intparentid=5313
  Institute for Local Self Government.
• Small is Fruitful: A hands-on approach to farmland preservation
  www.planning.org/planningpractice/1999/june99.htm
  From Planning Practice, monthly publication of the American Planning Association.
• American Farmland Trust
  www.farmland.org/merch/publist.htm
  AFT offers a number of publications, as well as maps and videos related to farmland loss and farmland preservation. Titles include:
  • Farming on the Edge
  • Forging New Protections: Purchasing Development Rights to Save Farmland
  • Saving America's Farmland (technical report series)
  • Saving American Farmland: What Works
• "Community Land Trusts: An Introduction"
  www.plannersweb.com/articles/pet112.html
  From Planning Commissioners Journal
• The Standards and Practices Guidebook: An Operating Manual for Land Trusts
  www.lta.org/publications/bkfund.htm#sandp
  The Land Trust Alliance, 1996.
  Provides guidelines for operating land trusts legally, ethically, and responsibly. This and other useful references for land trusts are available from the Land Trust Alliance.
• The Economic Benefits of Parks and Open Space: How Land Conservation Helps Communities Grow Smart and Protect the Bottom Line
  www.tpl.org/tier3_cdl.cfm?content_item_id=1145&folder_id=727
  From the Trust for Public Land. Relates how communities around the country are learning that open space conservation is not an expense but an investment that produces important economic benefits. (PDF format.)
• Open Space Protection: Conservation Meets Growth Management
  www.brook.edu/dybdocroot/es/urban/publications/hollisfultonopenspace.htm
  a report from the Brookings Institution, provides an overview of the nature, quantity and objectives of open space programs in the U.S. and begins to speculate how they may affect the shape and form of metropolitan areas. (PDF)
• Open Space Zoning: What It Is & Why It Works
  www.plannersweb.com/wfiles/w590.html
  describes the advantage of open space zoning over conventional zoning in preserving open space, natural areas and farmland. An article from the Planning Commissioner's Journal, by Randall Arendt.
• The Economic Value of Open Space
  www.lincolninst.edu/landline/1996/septembr/opspace2.html
  argues that land use decisions ranging from the allocation of scarce conservation budgets to the property rights debate will be better informed if a more comprehensive understanding of the economic value of open space exists. From Land Lines, the newsletter of the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy.
• Open Space Conservation: Investing in Your Community's Economic Health, Lincoln Institute of Land Policy
  www.lincolninst.edu/pubs/ordering.html
  This book explores how American communities have historically protected and maintained open space through a combination of planning strategies, regulatory measures, public investments and private initiatives. The effectiveness of various alternatives used to finance open space acquisitions are analyzed, including conservation easements, impact fees, transfer taxes, specials parks and business improvement districts, and conservation zoning.
• Conservation Design for Subdivisions: A Practical Guide to Creating Open Space Networks, Island Press, ISBN 1-55963-489-8.
  www.islandpress.org/
  A step-by-step approach to conserving natural areas is proposed, in which density on each development parcel is rearranged as the development is being planned so that only half (or less) of the buildable land is turned into houselots and streets.
• Open Space: Preservation and Acquisition, Volume 5 of Building Sustainable Communities, The Global Cities Project, 1991. ISBN 1-880386-05-4.
  This book identifies what local governments can do to preserve and acquire open space within and surrounding communities, and it offers an extensive bibliography. It is available from the Global Cities Project: 2962 Fillmore Street, San Francisco, CA 94123. Phone: (415) 775-0791; FAX (415) 775-4159.
• Parks, Recreation and Open Space
  www.alexander-garvin.com/Parks1.html
  APA Planning Advisory Service, 2001. ISBN 1-884829-54-6.
  A set of principles to guide the actions of public and private leaders in all aspects of park, recreation, and open space development.