A large parcel of Buffalo Township farmland will stay farmland for the future thanks to an investment from the commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Through its Farmland Preservation Program, Pennsylvania has invested nearly $190,000 in conservation easements to preserve 43 acres of farmland owned by Frank and Margaret Ruckdeschel. The crop and livestock farm is located off Goldscheitter Road.

The acquisition was confirmed at a Pennsylvania Agricultural Land Preservation board meeting on Thursday, Feb. 12, and announced in a news release by the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture the following day.

The state will invest $186,729 to preserve the farm, with Butler County chipping in $2,100.

In total, Pennsylvania is investing nearly $7.1 million to preserve 1,905 acres of farmland on 25 farms in 17 counties.

According to Sheryl Kelly, environmental specialist and farmland coordinator for Butler County, the Ruckdeschel farm marks the 81st farm preserved as part of the county’s farmland preservation efforts, totaling more than 8,236 acres.

To qualify for preservation, landowners have to meet several criteria, including having active production on at least 50% of the land in question.

“It’s a joint county/state program,” Kelly said. “Farm owners have to meet certain criteria and we work through the process of appraisal. There’s a lot of paperwork we have to go through. Maps are created. Everything goes through the state and it’s presented to the state board for approval. It takes between a year and a year and a half.”