A. Conservation of land resources. The
applicant shall certify that the real estate is being used in a planned program
of practices that:
1. With respect to real
estate devoted to a use that disturbs the soil or that affects water quality,
is intended to (in the case of soil) reduce or prevent soil erosion and (in the
case of water) improve water quality by best management practices such as
terracing, cover cropping, strip cropping, no-till planting, sodding waterways,
diversions, water impoundments, and other best management practices, to the
extent that best management practices exist for that use of the real
estate.
2. With respect to real
estate devoted to crops grown in the soil, is intended to maintain soil
nutrients by the application of soil nutrients (organic and inorganic) needed
to produce average yields of such crops or as recommended by soil
tests.
3. Is intended to control
brush, woody growth, and noxious weeds on row crops, hay, and pasture by the
use of herbicides, biological controls, cultivation, mowing, or other normal
cultural practices.
B.
Management and production. The applicant shall certify that the real estate is
being used in a planned program of management and production that corresponds
with the demonstration of at least one of the requirements in
2VAC5-20-20
A 1 through A 6.
C. Field crop
production shall be primarily for commercial uses and the average crop yield
per acre on each crop grown on the real estate shall be equal to at least
one-half of the county (city) average for the past three years; except that the
local government may prescribe lesser requirements when unusual circumstances
prevail and such requirements are not realistic.
Livestock, dairy, poultry, or aquaculture production shall be
primarily for commercial sale of livestock, dairy, poultry, and aquaculture
products. Livestock, dairy, and poultry shall have a minimum of 12 animal
unit-months of commercial livestock or poultry per five acres of open land in
the previous year. One animal unit to be one cow, one horse, five sheep, five
swine, 100 chickens, 66 turkeys, or 100 other fowl. (An animal unit-month means
one mature cow or the equivalent on five acres of land for one month;
therefore, 12 animal unit-months means the maintenance of one mature cow or the
equivalent on each five acres for 12 months, or any combination of mature cows
or the equivalent and months that would equal 12 animal unit-months, such as
three mature cows or the equivalent for four months, four mature cows or the
equivalent for three months, two mature cows or the equivalent for six months,
etc.).
Horticultural production includes nursery, greenhouse, cut
flowers, plant materials, orchards, vineyards, and small fruit products.
Notes
2 Va. Admin. Code §
5-20-30
Derived from
VR115-01-02 §2, eff. November 23, 1988; amended, Virginia Register Volume
22, Issue 11, eff. March 10, 2006; Errata, 22:13 VA.R. 2153 March 6, 2006;
Amended,
Virginia
Register Volume 37, Issue 02, eff.
10/15/2020.
Statutory Authority: §
58.1-3230
of the Code of Virginia.