2003 Environmental Quality Incentive Program

Local Work Group Summary for Portales

Introduction:

The Portales Field Office Local Work Group area covers two Soil and Water Conservation Districts; Border and Roosevelt, and includes land in both Chaves and Roosevelt Counties. The area is on the High Plains of east central New Mexico and ranges from the Texas State line on the east to the Pecos River on the west. The area includes dry cropland, irrigated cropland, and rangeland. In recent years, many dairies have been established in the area. Most of the irrigated cropland is served by the Ogallala Aquifer and is experiencing yearly decreases in pumped water yield. The area receives an average of 13 to 16 inches of annual precipitation and has a 180-day frost-free growing season. All of the cropland in the area is considered Highly Erodible Land.

Local Work Group:

The area represented by the Local Work Group (LWG) comprises approximately 2.17 million acres with about 6% being irrigated cropland, 10% dry cropland, and 84% rangeland. There are 53 animal feeding operations (AFOs) included in the area. The Local Work Group invited 38 people to their two meetings, with at least 21 attending each meeting. In addition to supervisors from both soil and water conservation districts (SWCDs), the group included NM State University Extension, New Mexico Game and Fish, NM Department of Agriculture, NM State Land Office, NM Environment Department, NM State Engineer, County Administrators, US Fish and Wildlife Service, Resource Conservation and Development, Bureau of Land Management, and Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). Meetings were held on February 6th and April 3rd with 26 and 21 in attendance, respectively. A Local Stakeholder Meeting was held on March 18th with 16 individuals present. See the attached Local Work Group attendance sheet.

Priority Resource Concerns:

The resource concerns identified by the LWG are Irrigated Cropland, Dry Cropland, Rangeland, and Livestock Manure Management. Irrigated Cropland concerns include irrigation efficiency and reduction of aquifer usage. Dry Cropland concerns include terraces and diversions as well as returning marginal cropland to permanent vegetation. Rangeland concerns include brush control, livestock water development, grazing management, erosion control, and Lesser Prairie Chicken habitat. Livestock Manure Management concerns include sediment basins, lagoon seepage, nutrient management, and manure handling. Buffers and windbreaks will be included in each land use.

Funding Considerations:

The funds provided for Environmental Quality Incentive Program (EQIP) will be allocated in proportion to how they are received. Funding requests will be ranked according to the resource concern they are treating and use EQIP funds that were received for that concern. Should there be insufficient funding requests in any category, the remaining funds will be allocated in direct proportion to the requests received in the other categories. It is projected that the total funding requests will be approximately three times the funds received.

Cost Docket: Refer to Cost Docket

 Practices that are not applicable in this area are indicated with a "0".

Practices to be Eligible:

The FY 2003 EQIP Eligible Practices and Rates list denotes conservation practices that will be eligible for inclusion in contracts within this Local Work Group area. 

Cost Share Rate and Incentive Payments:

The FY 2003 EQIP Eligible Practices and Rates list shows the eligible practices with their corresponding cost share rates and/or incentive payments.  All practices will be cost-shared at 50% with the following exceptions: Brush Management (314), Dike (356), Diversions (362), Grassed Waterways (412) and Terraces (600) will be cost shared at 65%.  Windbreaks (380 and 650) will be cost- shared at 75%.  Several practices are not eligible for will not be cost sharing and are listed at 0%. These practices are often a requirement of another cost shared practice. (i.e. Contour farming is required following the installation of a terrace system.)

Prescribed Grazing is the only practice that will be eligible for incentive payments (at $7.50/ac), but only when it is used in conjunction with management to improve Lesser Prairie Chicken habitat.  Interested producers will be required to defer a pasture (640-acre minimum) from domestic livestock grazing for ten months (August 1st through June 30th) to participate.  In addition, a confirmed active lek site must be within one mile of the enrolled acreage.

Additionally, a $50,000 per contract limit has been established for the following practices: Brush Management (314), Pond (378), Pond Sealing or Lining (521A,B,C), Prescribed Grazing (528a), Waste Storage Facility (313), Waste Treatment Lagoon (359), and Waste Utilization (633).

Ranking Criteria:

Ranking Criteria Worksheets were developed for all five identified resource concerns. Each worksheet reflects the relative importance of the different sections and items therein. 

Timelines, Evaluation Periods:

It is anticipated that all applications will be ranked and contracts approved by August 1, 2003.

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