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Conservation Security Program
By Kirk Weih, AFM
The Natural Resources Conservation Service recently announced the list of watersheds for a February 2005 Conservation Security Program (CPS) signup. They include four watersheds in Iowa-Turkey River, Upper Wapsipinicon River, North Raccoon River and Platte River; two watersheds in Illinois-Lower Kaskaskia, Middle Wabash-Busseron; two watersheds in Indiana-Tippecanoe, Middle Wabash-Deer; and four watersheds in Nebraska-Upper Big Blue, Middle Big Blue, West Fork Big Blue, Turkey. (See map.)
The CPS is a voluntary program that provides financial and technical assistance for the conservation, protection and improvement of soil, water, air, energy and plant and animal life. The conservation benefits will keep farms more sustainable and profitable and increase the benefits provided to all landowners through natural resources. The program provides payments to owners/operators who practice good stewardship on their farms and incentives for those who want to do more.
We will conduct an inventory of each farm we manage located in the eligible watersheds to identify the resource concerns and determine the extent of conservation treatment that is being applied and maintained on the farm. CPS will provide base payments determined by the treatment level, maintenance payments for currently applied conservation practices and enhanced payments for exceptional conservation efforts.
A three tiered approach will be used for the base payments. Tier I addresses at least one natural resource concern on part of the farm with a payment that ranges up to $15.00 per acre. Tier I contracts are limited to five years. Tier II is more comprehensive and treats one natural resource concern on the entire farm with a payment that may range from $15 to $25 per acre. Tier II contracts range from five to ten years as determined by the owner. Tier III is the most comprehensive level of conservation management. It must treat all natural resource concerns on the entire farm. The payment may range from $25 to $40 per acre. Tier III contracts range from five to ten years as determined by the owner. There were only four Tier III CPS contracts approved in Iowa in the first offering in May 2004.
The records we have kept on our managed farms will assist us in providing the detailed documentation required to qualify for CPS. Several examples of this documentation include:
- Confirming the actual amount of nitrogen applied to our managed farms in the past two years.
- Confirming the Actual Production History from crop insurance records to assist in determining future nitrogen needs.
- Identifying the productivity of the actual soils on each farm and field, which will assist in determining the maximum nitrogen rate to be applied in the future.
- Confirming the use of yield monitors, providing copies of detailed soil tests and confirming a regular testing program is in place, providing documentation of crop scouting.
- Identifying areas of natural vegetation including trees, shrubs, wildlife food plots, planting of native prairie grasses as part of CRP practices, no-till planting, waterways, terraces and headlands. All of these practices will add points to the CPS application.
Our hands-on management approach will prove valuable in documenting the extensive stewardship that has been implemented on our managed farms.
CPS supports ongoing conservation stewardship of farms and enhances the condition of our agricultural natural resources. NRCS will offer CPS each year, on a rotational basis, in as many watersheds as funding allows.
Hertz Farm Management, Inc. managers will pursue the application and documentation of conservation practices on our managed farms for our owners. This is yet another example of how we create value for our clients.
