AEM is a voluntary, incentive-based program that helps farmers make common-sense, cost-effective and science-based decisions to help meet business objectives while protecting and conserving the State’s natural resources. Farmers work with local AEM resource professionals to develop comprehensive farm plans using a tiered process:
AEM Core Concepts
Goals of AEM:
Farmers have long been regarded as the original stewards of the land because a farm’s livelihood directly depends on the health and vitality of the soil and water resources. AEM is designed to help farmers further protect those and other important natural resources. By participating in AEM, farmers can document their environmental stewardship and contribute to a positive image of agriculture in their communities. If a potential environmental concern is identified through the AEM assessment process, farmers can then take steps to plan for and then implement an appropriate course of action through the AEM approach. The AEM assessment, planning and implementation process helps to target limited local, state and federal technical and financial resources to farms with the greatest potential for impacting the environment. The farmer is always the ultimate decision-maker in cooperation with members of local AEM teams and qualified private consultants which help to ensure that farm business objectives are met while also achieving local, state and federal environmental and water quality goals.
The primary goal of AEM is to protect and enhance the environment while maintaining the viability of agriculture in New York State.
Additionally AEM strives to:
“Agriculture shapes both the spirit and the landscape of the place where it is found. Its open fields, scenic vistas and way of life help define the character of an area. These attributes, so synonymous with rural like, are unique to farming. Other land uses cannot replicate them. Then farming begins to disappear, the physical and human personality of the area is altered forever.” (American Farmland Trust, 1993)
Farmers Protecting the Environment Award