The report shows that a state plan to preserve one million acres of open space over the next decade was only protecting about 50,000 acres a year, half of what was envisioned. The study says another $125 million in additional spending is needed to fill the gap.
In addition to the real estate tax increase, the report suggests state bonds and borrowing against federal funds as other avenues to raise more money.
Since 1980 and 2020, the Carolinas Land Conservation Network estimates 41 acres a day of open space are lost to development in the Charlotte region. Statewide, there are estimates that 156,000 acres of farm and forestland are taken over by development each year.
Former Gov. Jim Hunt proposed the state protect one million acres by the end of 2009, in addition to the existing 2.7 million acres already held in land trusts.
A $1 increase in the real estate transfer taxes could bring in $30 million a year, while borrowing against federal clean-water and drinking water funds could generate $40 million a year, the report says.
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