Therefore, consideration should be given to establishing separation distances between agricultural uses and non-agricultural uses, such as housing, in the planning documents . Since farms and their impacts vary considerably, there are no hard and fast rules for separation distances. Still there are some sources of information which may be of assistance. That document, in addition to setting recommended separation distances for farms, also suggests that municipalities apply these separation distances in a reciprocal fashion to other land uses. For example, this means establishing a separation distance for a new hog barn from existing residential uses and a similar one for new residential uses from existing hog barns.
Good soil is essential for most agriculture.
Removing the topsoil can change once highly valued agricultural soil into virtually useless farm land. This is a new power. Existing land-use patterns, economic conditions and the location and size of agricultural holdings means not all areas can be protected for food production, e.g., when agricultural land is located within an urban area. In these cases, planning documents must address the reasons why agriculture lands cannot be protected for agricultural use. Where possible, non-agricultural development should be directed to the lands with the lowest agricultural value.