Since then, the program has saved almost 60,000 acres across the state. To keep this in perspective, the current goal is to preserve 500,000 of the estimated remaining 800,000 acres. The recently passed Garden State Preservation Trust Act with its new long-term funding for open space and farmland will help. The new program will focus almost half of the funds on farmland preservation. The rest will go for open space with a small amount to historic preservation programs.
New Jersey has one of the most successful farmland preservation programs in the country.
As early as the 1960's, New Jersey acted to stem the loss of its farmland. Recent highly publicized reports have criticized the program's preservation of wetlands, saying taxpayers are cheated because wetlands are already regulated. These reports also criticize public servants such as County Agriculture Development board members for personally participating in farmland preservation. In fact, such criticisms entirely miss the point. Let me explain.