Virginia Department
of Forestry

PDR programs offer compensation to landowners who voluntarily place conservation easements on their farm or forestland. By restricting development, this incentivized structure works to preserve valuable working lands.

DOF’s OWL’s staff works with localities to help establish local PDR programs by creating model policies and practices, establishing criteria to certify programs as eligible to receive funds from public sources, and determining methods and sources of funding for localities to purchase conservation easements.

OWL administers the Virginia Farmland and Forestland Preservation Fund (FFPF) which, among other objectives, provides matching state grants to certified local PDR programs.

Only six Virginia localities have active funded PDR programs. Select links below to view locality PDR program information:

• City of Chesapeake: https://www.cityofchesapeake.net/586/Open-Space-Agricultural-Preservation-Pro
• Clarke County: https://www.clarkecounty.gov/how-do-i/place-land-in-conservation-easement
• Fauquier County: https://www.fauquiercounty.gov/government/departments-a-g/agricultural-development/pdr-purchase-of-development-rights-program
• Shenandoah County: https://www.shenandoahcountyva.gov/192/Conservation-Easement-Authority
• Stafford County: https://staffordcountyva.gov/government/departments_p-z/planning_and_zoning/purchase_of_development_rights_program/index.php
• Virginia Beach: https://agriculture.virginiabeach.gov/agricultural-reserve-program/agricultural-reserve-program-faq

Counties with authorized, but unfunded PDR programs:

• Albemarle
• Culpeper
• Cumberland
• Franklin
• Frederick
• Goochland
• Isle of Wight
• James City
• Loudoun
• Nelson
• New Kent
• Northampton
• Prince William
• Rappahannock
• Rockbridge
• Spotsylvania
• Warren
• Washington

If you’re interested in applying for state-matching PDR funding, view Apply for State-Matching PDF Funding.

TDR programs are land-use planning tools that protect agricultural, forestal and other open-space lands by restricting development in areas with high conservation values and encouraging development in designated growth areas. They can be designed to complement other rural land preservation initiatives and methods.

The Code of Virginia authorizes localities to establish these programs that transfer the development rights from a “sending” property (property that the locality is trying to protect) to one or more “receiving” properties (properties where the locality is trying to encourage development). Developers of “receiving” properties compensate landowners of “sending” properties for their transferred development rights.

These programs are unique in that no public funding is utilized – these transactions are conducted between private property owners. TDR programs assist localities in directing development away from planned rural areas while easing the zoning restrictions and increasing the development potential for properties in designated growth areas.

Examples of TDR Programs

Only three Virginia localities have TDR programs or ordinances. Select from the links provided to see examples of active TDR programs in Virginia:

• Frederick County
• Stafford County
• Arlington County

The Code of Virginia authorizes localities to establish an LDR program. LDR programs are similar to PDR programs except that the term of the lease agreement can be as short as 5 years under Virginia’s Open-Space Land Act.

By requiring a smaller initial investment from the locality than PDRs and potentially being attractive to a greater number of landowners, LDR programs might complement PDRs and TDRs. LDRs can also complement Use-Value Assessment. An LDR program enables a locality to set the terms of eligibility, easement duration, restrictions and compensation, unlike Use-Value Assessment, which has standards established by the Code of Virginia.

Currently, no Virginia locality has enacted an LDR program.