Conservation

Our Incredible Vanishing Farmland

https://www.drovers.com/article/our-incredible-vanishing-farmland We lose three acres of farmland in the United States every minute. You read that right. Three acres every sixty seconds. This wakeup call comes courtesy of John Piotti, President of American Farmland Trust (AFT), who spoke about conservation and Farmland at the 2019 Trust in Food Symposium Jan. 15 and 16 in Chicago. “Over the last 20 years, we’ve lost 31 million acres of farmland—that’s equivalent to all the farmland in Iowa. That’s over 1.5 million acres a year, or three acres every minute,” Piotti says. READ ARTICLE

Greater Sage Grouse

Tuesday morning, at 9am, Secretary of Interior Sally Jewell made the announcement that the Greater Sage Grouse will not be listed on the endangered species list. “This is truly a historic day in the history of the American West cattle business,” said Oregon Cattlemen’s Executive Director Jerome Rosa. “Through collaborative efforts by ranchers, energy companies and conservationist reducing the decline of the sage grouse habitat in 11 Western states, the need for a listing was not needed.”  See entire article at AgWeb.com.

Accommodation Doctrine Applies to Groundwater

Texas Supreme Court:  Accommodation Doctrine Applies to Groundwater Texas Agriculture Law Blog: Agrilife.org In an important decision that could have far-reaching impacts, the Texas Supreme Court sided with the Coyote Lake Ranch, holding that the accommodation doctrine does apply to groundwater in Texas. This case is extremely important for Texas landowners and groundwater owners. For the first time, the Texas Supreme Court announced that the accommodation doctrine, previously applied only in oil and gas severances, will apply in groundwater severances as well. READ ARTICLE.

Texas Real Estate Attorney Hammers WOTUS Reg

LandOwner Newsletter Vol 37 Issue 9 May 12, 2016 Texas Real Estate Attorney Hammers WOTUS Reg A court stay is the only wall standing between landowner property rights and a federal takeover of most of the nation’s land, says Judon Fambrough, an attorney with the Teal Estate Center at Texas A & M University. The result of the waters of the U.S. (WOTUS) regulation enacted by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) means “the Clean Water Act’s jurisdiction now extends well beyond the navigable waters of the U.S. to practically all waters if implemented,” says …

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CRP Enrollment Deadline

The most current general enrollment for the Conservation Reserve Program began December 1, 2015. Enrollment will run thru February 26, 2016.  According to the  USDA, “as of September, 2015. 24.2 million acres were enrolled in CRP.  CRP is also protecting 170,000 stream miles with riparian forest and grass buffers, enough to go around the world 7 times.”  Check out the USDA’s Celebrating 30 Years of the Conservation Reserve Program.

USDA Announces Conservation Incentives for Working Grass, Range and Pasture Lands

WASHINGTON, July 15, 2015 – Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced that beginning Sept. 1, farmers and ranchers can apply for financial assistance to help conserve working grasslands, rangeland and pastureland while maintaining the areas as livestock grazing lands. The initiative is part of the voluntary Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), a federally funded program that for 30 years has assisted agricultural producers with the cost of restoring, enhancing and protecting certain grasses, shrubs and trees to improve water quality, prevent soil erosion and reduce loss of wildlife habitat. In return, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) provides participants with rental …

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New CRP Website

The USDA has a New CRP Website.  Seems to be a well organized website for those familiar with the Conservation Reserve Program, as well as those who are not as familiar. If you have questions about this program, chances are you will find the answers here.  Click here to go to the new website.  

Interesting Topics in Agriculture

Interesting Topics in Agriculture Flake, McCain introduce bill to help reduce wildfire risk U.S. senators Jeff Flake and John McCain, both Arizona Republicans, have introduced a bill that would reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfires.Legal scholars predict Utah land transfer takes the public out of public lands Acquiring title to 31 million acres of public lands could lead to less public access, less public involvement in land-use decisions and perhaps a better chance that imperiled plants and animals win federal protection under the Endangered Species Act. Using drones to sell homes — except in Washington Douglas Trudeau wanted to do things …

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US Senate Rejects Amendment on Lesser Prairie Chicken

US Senate Rejects Amendment on Lesser Prairie Chicken KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – The U.S. Senate has rejected an amendment by Sen. Jerry Moran of Kansas that would have removed the lesser prairie chicken from the federal government’s threatened species act. The Kansas City Star reports Moran’s amendment to a bill intended to expedite construction of the Keystone XL pipeline fell short of the 60 votes needed to be added to the measure.The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service last year designated the lesser prairie chicken as threatened, which is one step below endangered under the Endangered Species Act.Moran says federal …

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USDA Programs to Conserve Sensitive Land and Help Beginning Farmers

June 4, 2014 Press Release – USDA Farm Service Agency “Farmers, ranchers and landowners committed to protecting and conserving environmentally sensitive land may now sign up for the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). Additionally, retiring farmers enrolled in CRP could receive incentives to transfer a portion of their land to beginning, disadvantaged or veteran farmers through the Transition Incentives Program (TIP).” See complete press release here. “CRP consists of a ‘continuous’ and ‘general’ sign-up period.  Continuous sign up for the voluntary program starts June 9.” “The Transition Incentives Program provides two additional years of payments for retired farmers and ranchers who …

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