Excerpt
The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) received a boost at the end of January 2008 when then-acting Secretary of Agriculture Chuck Conner announced a new continuous CRP practice. Secretary Conner announced approval of State Acres For Wildlife Enhancement (SAFE) proposals covering 259,776 ac (105,172 ha) in 18 states.
“USDA is ushering in a new era in the history of the CRP by making it even more focused, results-oriented, and community based,” Conner said in a press statement. SAFE projects will be available through the USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) service centers as part of the ongoing continuous sign-up for the Conservation Reserve Program. Additional proposals have since been approved, bringing the nationwide authorization to 500,000 ac (202,429 ha) in 33 states.
The Minnesota-approved SAFE practice, also called the “Minnesota Back Forty,” has been allocated 23,100 ac (9,352 ha). The eligible area covers approximately two-thirds of the state and is specifically targeted at improving habitat for ring-necked pheasants and greater prairie chickens. Pheasants are an upland nesting bird preferring small blocks of undisturbed grassland nesting habitat. Pheasants are barometers of the environmental health of Minnesota's farmlands, as their populations ebb and flow with landowner participation in conservation programs.
In Minnesota, the focus …
Footnotes
Jason C. Selvog is a farm bill biologist with Pheasants Forever Inc.
- © 2008 by the Soil and Water Conservation Society
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