House Republican Press Release

April 9, 2007

Press Office: 860-240-8700

Mike Alberts Praises Connecticut Farm Film

Says State Needs to Do More to Preserve its Disappearing Farmland

State Rep. Mike Alberts, R-50^th, Brooklyn, Eastford, Hampton, Pomfret, Woodstock, says a new documentary, “Working the Land, The Story of Connecticut Agriculture” is a wake-up call and underlines the need to accelerate state farmland preservation efforts.

Rep. Alberts said, "I encourage all who are interested in learning more about farming in Connecticut and the critical junction at which farming finds itself to watch this film."

"Few Connecticut residents fully understand the magnitude of our state's agricultural economy and the contribution that it makes to preserving our rural quality of life, particularly in my district’s communities of Brooklyn, Eastford, Hampton, Pomfret and Woodstock. This film features local farmers and the challenges that they face in continuing to operate in one of the most expensive states in the country."

Connecticut has been losing farmland faster than many others state, Alberts noted, and the state has initiated several programs to purchase endangered farms or the development rights to those farms. Alberts noted that the legislature most recently adopted a farmland preservation bill in 2005 with his support.

“We need to do more,” Alberts said. “We need an intensive statewide effort to preserve what we have left, before it is too late.”

Two years in the making, the documentary by award-winning Connecticut filmmaker Connecticut Ken Simon is scheduled for broadcast on Connecticut Public Television this Friday, April 13, at 9:00 p.m. on CPTV stations around the state.

Rep. Alberts serves the 50^th Assembly District, including Brooklyn, Eastford, Hampton, Pomfret and Woodstock in the state House of Representatives.