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Ohio Farm Bureau says proposed ODOT connector could impact the state’s ag resources

Ohio Farm Bureau members are concerned a proposed rural infrastructure project could impact the state’s agricultural industry.

Leah Curtis, associate general counsel, says the Ohio Department of Transportation is looking to build a highway connector between U.S. 23 and Interstate 71 in Marion and Morrow counties, which could result in up to 900 acres of farmland taken out of production.

“We have lost, in the last twenty years, over a million acres of prime farmland in the state,” she says. “Farmers cannot farm without land. It is integral to their business. They can’t just go out and buy more, because once it’s gone, it’s gone.”

She tells Brownfield rural communities across the state are facing extreme land use pressures. 

“Even if you don’t take whole farms out of production, dividing farmland can create significant inefficiencies and sometimes make a farm business almost unviable,” she says. “Any change to that acreage can vastly change that business and its viability to continue.”

Curtis says protecting the state’s prime farmland and critical resources will be essential to safeguarding the future of Ohio’s ag sector.

ODOT is accepting public comments about the project until April 14th.

AUDIO: Leah Curtis, Ohio Farm Bureau