RD72 - Eighth Annual Summary of the Clean Water Farm Award Program Recipients


Executive Summary:
House Bill 807 of the 1998 General Assembly Session amended the Code of Virginia § 10.1-104.3, and directed the Department of Conservation and Recreation to implement the Clean Water Farm Awards and Bay-Friendly Farm Awards and to provide a report of that program to the General Assembly by December 1 of each calendar year, as follows:

"The Director shall establish the Clean Water Farm Awards Program to recognize farms in the Commonwealth which utilize practices designed to protect water quality and soil resources. A farm shall be eligible for recognition upon application from the farmer or the local soil and water conservation district, if the district concurs that the farmer is fully implementing a nutrient management plan.

The Director may establish guidelines for limiting the quantity of annual recipients, receiving and ranking applications, ensuring geographical representation of awards from the major watersheds of the Commonwealth including the Chesapeake Bay watershed, providing local farm recognition through the local soil and water conservation districts, and providing special statewide recognition to select farms, to be known as the Bay-Friendly Farm Awards, within the Chesapeake Bay watershed, and as the Clean Water Farm Awards in all other areas of the Commonwealth. The Department shall report to the General Assembly annually by December 1, the names, addresses and location of signs posted at recipient farms. Recognition under this program shall not be a requirement under any other state program. "