Ballam Farm Conservation Easement - Article #6

Question and Answer

What is the Ballam Farm project?  The Ballam Farm project is an effort to protect Walpole’s drinking water aquifer, to preserve prime working farmland, and to protect almost ½ mile of undeveloped shoreline along the Connecticut River – all important priorities of the town’s master plan. The Ballam Farm property is 60 acres of prime farmland adjacent to Walpole’s drinking water well, known as the River Well, located between Route 12 and the Connecticut River.  The property makes up nearly 20% of the drinking water aquifer or source water protection area for the River Well. 

A  "Yes Vote will… " Preserve 52 acres of working farmland, protect the town’s most productive drinking water source and will protect nearly ½ mile of Connecticut River shoreline.  A Yes Vote will also bring in $448,000 in federal and state grant money to help the town purchase the conservation easement and 8 acres.

A No Vote will…  Likely result in the loss of this farmland to commercial “strip” development and/or residential development.

    How will the land be protected?  The Trust for Public Land (TPL) a private, not-for-profit conservation group, is working with the town to convey a conservation easement and additional 8 acre area to the town.  The Monadnock Conservancy will hold an executory interest in the conservation easement.

What are the sources of funding for the project? Federal and state grants and funds to the Walpole Conservation Commission totaling $498,000 have been approved for the protection of Ballam Farm.  Town funding in the amount of up to $277,000 is required to match these grants and to complete the project.

What does Article 6 ask the Town to do? Article 6 requests authority for the town to raise and appropriate the total sum of $775,000 for the purchase of a conservation easement over approximately 52 acres and an 8 acre addition to the Town’s river well property in fee simple and for associated project costs to permanently protect the Ballam Farm property.  In addition it requests authority for the town to accept federal and state grants and to borrow up to $277,000 through a low interest loan from the NH Department of Environmental Services (DES) at 2.18% for 10 years.  The first year payment will cost the town approximately $31,000 and the Selectmen and the Conservation Commission have agreed to use portions of the Land Use Change Tax to help make these payments.

What is the tax impact to the Town? About 9¢ per $1,000 of assessed real estate value each year for 10 years, the length of the DES loan.  The cost would likely be even less by paying the loan off with town Land Use Change Tax revenues.

Why now? In the past Wal-Mart tried to locate a store on this property.  More recently a car dealership was proposed along with some residential development.  After discussions with town officials it was clear that this was a property the town wanted protected.  Last spring TPL took the property off the market by securing an agreement for its purchase and began applying for grants for the property’s protection.  Without town funding the opportunity to protect this piece of land and a significant portion of the town’s drinking water aquifer, could be lost.

Is agriculture compatible with drinking water protection? Yes, the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and the NH Department of Environmental Services (DES) are both partners in this project.  DES allows agriculture within source water protection areas provided they are outside of a well’s sanitary radius (400 feet).  The Ballam Farm property is outside of that boundary.  Through this project the town will gain an additional 8 acres around their River Well as an additional buffer.  Under the terms of the conservation easement, farm operations must be conducted in accordance with an approved NRCS Conservation Plan.

Project Partners and Supporters:

Walpole Board of Selectmen, Walpole Conservation Commission, Walpole Wellhead Protection Committee, The Monadnock Conservancy, Granite State Rural Water Association, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Farm and Ranchland Protection Program, and the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services.

For more information, call Josh Kelly of The Trust for Public Land at (802) 223-1373 ext. 23.