Tennessee Landowners, Communities Pleased with New "Golden Age of Conservation"

Many Tennessee landowners are receiving 2002 Farm Bill benefits and seem to be pleased with what the Chief of USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service Bruce Knight calls the new "Golden Age of Conservation."

James White from Clay County recently had this to say about the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP): "The EQIP gives you an incentive to do something immediately. It is invaluable to the improvement of the property, and it is the smartest thing I have ever done on the farm. I am so happy that I have applied the practices to my land. The EQIP allows you to do this and get it done quickly. Now I have one of the best conservation systems in the nation on my farm in Tennessee."

The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in part with other agencies and organizations have entered into contracts for $10.6 million to implement conservation plans. The EQIP provided a major of the funding.

James Ford, NRCS state conservationist, said: "Tennessee NRCS employees have accomplished unbelievable goals this year in assisting landowners with technical assistance relating to Farm Bill programs and in obligating the huge increase in conservation funding."

He added, "In addition to our original allocation, we received an amount from a national pool of unobligated funds. Tennessee received this additional funding in the last month of the fiscal year, and our employees put forth a lot of extra effort to get the money obligated."

Following is a summary of 2002 Farm Bill programs and benefits provided to Tennessee landowners through the NRCS:

-- Through the EQIP, Tennessee landowners received $7.3 million in funding.
-- There were approximately 525 contracts with four contracts exceeding $100,000.
-- EQIP funds help Tennessee farmers install conservation practices to address serious environmental problems that threaten their land.

NRCS assisted landowners develop conservation plans for Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) applicants with 1,267 offers accepted on 53,231 acres. This is more than any other southeastern state. Eighty-four percent of Tennessee acres and 81 percent of the offers were accepted. This is one of the highest percentages of accepted offers ever in CRP. (The CRP is administered by the Farm Service Agency with technical assistance by the NRCS.)

Through the Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP), the NRCS obligated and committed $2.1 million to restore Tennessee's wetlands and enhance wetland functions and values. This year, there were six new easements and approximately 1,575 acres accepted.

In fiscal year 2003, the Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP) provided $120,000 in funding to 30 landowners to develop and enhance wildlife habitat.

A new program called the Grassland Reserve Program (GRP) has been very popular with Tennessee landowners. GRP funding in the amount of $1,044,373 was provided to approximately 70 landowners in the state this fiscal year. (The NRCS and the Farm Service Agency administer the program, in cooperation with the Forest Service.)

With the 2002 Farm Bill, landowners were given the option of receiving technical assistance from USDA or others in the private sector called Technical Service Providers. At the present time, there are several technical service providers available for Tennessee landowners through TechReg, a website especially designed for landowners and technical service providers. For additional information, visit the Tennessee NRCS website at www.tn.nrcs.usda.gov.

In fiscal year 2003, an agreement was signed between NRCS and the University of Tennessee to provide CNMP certification training for NRCS employees as well as for persons in the private sector. This training was recently extended to two times per year. As a result of this training, 265 persons from the private sector have been certified as technical service providers.

NRCS provided assistance to 18 landowners in the state to assist them in developing Comprehensive Nutrient Management Plans (CNMPs). Fourteen CNMPs have been applied this fiscal year. Approximately 30 landowners received assistance from NRCS to plan and design animal waste systems.

Ford said: "The Natural Resources Conservation Service strives to operate more efficiently and yet provide better service to our customers. During this year, NRCS worked diligently to provide online resources for Tennessee landowners."

The NRCS Technical Guide, 2002 Farm Bill Program, and other information has been converted to an electronic version and can be viewed online.

Courtesy of Pulaski Citizen.