Local producers may miss out on funds

Local farmers and ranchers could miss out on payments from a lucrative government conservation program if they don’t sign up before the May 27 deadline.

The Conservation Security Program (CSP), which is administered by the USDA-NRCS, rewards topnotch conservation farmers and ranchers who already act as model conservationists.  It also pays qualified producers to do further environmental enhancements, such as additional conservation treatments, and evaluations.

Weldon Sears with the local NRCS office told the Enterprise last week that incentive payments to landowners could be from $5,000 to $45,000 per year for conservation that most people are already doing. 

But of the 750 landowners eligible in Donley County, none had applied for the program as of last week. Sears said the deadline is fast approaching; and once it closes, the program will not return to Donley County for eight to ten years.

CSP is a three-tiered program with different requirements for each tier.  All CSP producers, regardless of the tier at which they participate, must ultimately address minimum treatment criteria for soil quality and water quality. 

Techniques to achieve these soil and water criteria will vary depending on your ranch’s slope, climate, soil texture, and other characteristics.  Typically, sound resource management will include activities such as those shown below and will result in fertile soil with valuable organic matter that is protected from erosion.  Additionally, pesticides and nutrients will be managed to help keep surface and groundwater clean to protect human and environmental health. 

Producers who may be eligible for CSP do all of the following: Use a grazing plan allowing for periods of rest; Keep records of livestock/grazing production; Maintain a proper forage/livestock balance; Have adequate water and proper water distribution; Manage livestock access to water; Actively control weeds and invasive plant species; Monitor rangeland health; and are willing to pursue additional conservation enhancements.

 For more information and to find out if you qualify, contact the NRCS at 806-874-3561 ext. 3 or come by 321 S. Sully in Clarendon.