State of Minnesota

Agricultural Preservation and Feedlot Regulation Handbooks
   

For the Minnesota Department of Agriculture, Duncan Associates prepared two planning and zoning handbooks for cities, townships and counties within the state. The first handbook, Planning for Animal Agriculture in Minnesota: A Handbook for Local Governments, was written to address land use planning and permitting issues related to large animal confinements. The Animal Agriculture handbook included an in-depth exploration of relevant legal issues; an overview of land use regulation options; and a set of "sample" zoning regulations for animal agriculture.

Throughout, it stressed the importance of addressing contentious land use issues through the planning process. The handbook's central theme was that, without a background of careful planning, land use standards for livestock facilities, like those for any unwanted land use, provide only partial solutions to problems. Considering animal agriculture comprehensively, in the context of other land uses in the county, township or city, holds the promise of providing a more complete range of options to address these difficult and controversial issues. The companion handbook, Planning for Agricultural Land Preservation in Minnesota: A Handbook for Planning Under Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 40A, was written for rural counties and local governments interested in preparing farmland preservation and rural land use plans in accordance with the Minnesota Agricultural Land Preservation Act. It presented a step-by-step procedural guide to preparing an agricultural land preservation plan and securing approval from the Minnesota Department of Agriculture (required under the Act). The handbook was written with an eye toward ensuring that it could also be used as a guide for rural planning in general. Both handbooks were fully illustrated and included comprehensive bibliographies, and a listing of information sources.

Period:    April 1995 - July 1995               Contact:    Bob Patton
Team:       Duncan Associates                                    Project Coordinator
               Iowa State University                                 651.296.5226