ALBANY – The Town of Wallkill in Orange County is the recipient of a $25,000 grant from the state Agriculture Department for farmland protection planning.

“Local municipalities are taking a more proactive role in the planning and regulation of land use in New York State and these grants will help them put pen to paper in planning for the protection of viable and active farmland,” said Commissioner Patrick Hooker.

“Farmers need local governments to establish a supportive environment for their business, as much as local governments need farmers to help lower taxes and generate local revenue,” he said.

The planning grant, along with similar ones for the towns of Ancram in Columbia County and Hamden and Stamford in Delaware County, provide them with an economic incentive to develop local agricultural and farmland protection plans.