2005 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 (High Plains) 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 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 meeting held on November 3, 2004, and 22 attended.  In addition to supervisors from both SWCDs, the group included New Mexico Game and Fish, USFWS, NMSU Extension, and NRCS. 

Priority Resource Concerns: 

Resource concerns were identified by the LWG for the following land uses: Irrigated Cropland, Dry Cropland, Rangeland, Wildlife, and Livestock Manure Management.  Irrigated Cropland concerns include water quality, irrigation efficiency and reduction of aquifer usage.  Dry Cropland concerns include soil erosion from wind and water as well as flooding.  Rangeland concerns include range plant health and composition, water quantity, brush infestation, livestock water availability, grazing management, soil erosion, and Lesser Prairie Chicken habitat.  Wildlife Habitat is a new concern that will target primarily playa lakes on rangeland (see below).  Livestock Manure Management concerns include sediment basins, lagoon seepage, nutrient management, and manure handling.  Windbreaks will be included in each land use.

The Ground and Surface Water program will be managed independently of normal EQIP and the proposal is attached as a separate document.  Incentive payment amounts and cost-share rates are included on the Roosevelt County Component Cost List.

New for 2005 – Wildlife Habitat Resource Concern:

In keeping with this Local Work Group’s proactive approach to natural resource conservation, it has elected to try a new Wildlife Habitat conservation program in 2005.  As stated earlier, 2.5% of the funds received this year (approximately $35,000) will be targeted to this new resource concern.  The objective of the program is to enhance and restore wildlife habitat at and around the area’s playa lakes.  Most playas occur on rangeland and are often heavily grazed due to their productivity and forage species makeup.  Local biologists have demonstrated the necessity of functioning playas to provide critical habitat for migratory birds as well as resident wildlife.  Healthy playas are considered keystone ecosystems that serve as critical sites of biodiversity in an area otherwise characterized by semi-arid rangelands and intensive agriculture.  Active habitat management is essential for restoring and sustaining populations of many obligate grassland and shrubland bird species.

The program will target playas on rangeland but also include pivot sprinkler corners.  (See attached Wildlife Ranking Sheet.)  Prescribed Grazing, requiring specific deferment periods, will be the main focus and incentive payments will be used.  An incentive of $100 per acre for the playa itself and a surrounding buffer area of 150 feet will be offered.  In addition, an incentive of $7.50 per acre will be offered for the adjacent acreage for a maximum of 320 acres.  The incentives will be for three years.

Sprinkler pivot corners will be eligible for the program with the $100 per acre incentive but the ranking is such that rangeland playas will be contracted first.  It is projected that the funds will be exhausted on playas.

Funding Considerations:

The funds provided for EQIP will be allocated in proportion to how they are received with the exception of 5% of the total being dedicated to Windbreaks and 2.5% dedicated to Wildlife.  Funding requests will be ranked according to the ranking criteria developed for each land use and assigned to the EQIP funds that were received for that land use.  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 exceed the available funds.

 The EQIP funds will be allocated as follows:

•  Irrigated Cropland:        32.2%
•  Rangeland:                    27.5%
•  Dry Cropland:                20.1%
•  Manure Management:      12.7%
•  Windbreaks:                     5.0%
•  Wildlife:                            2.5%

These percentages will change if the EQIP funds received by the state are allocated differently than 2004; Dry Cropland – 5%, Irrigated Cropland – 30%, Rangeland – 50%, AFO – 10%.

Cost Docket: 

The attached Roosevelt County Component Cost List shows the accepted cost share rates for all of the practice components and their corresponding conservation practices.  Practices that are not applicable in this area are indicated with a “0” in the Current County Cost column.  Proposed changes in practice costs are shown in the New County Cost column and are subject to approval by the Area Conservationist.

Please refer to the links for the cost docket and eligible practices to view the final approved practices, cost share rates and practice components.

Eligible Practices:

Practices with a “0” in the 2005 Cost Share Rate column are not eligible for cost-share. 

Please refer to the links for the cost docket and eligible practices to view the final approved practices, cost share rates and practice component costs.

Cost Share Rates, Incentive Payments and Caps: 

The attached FY 2005 EQIP Eligible Practices and Rates list shows the eligible practices with their corresponding cost share rates and incentive payments.  All practices will be cost-shared at 50% with the exception of the following:

• Brush Management (314) – 65%
• Dike (356) – 65%
• Diversion (362) – 65%
• Grassed Waterway (412) – 65%
• Irrigation System (442) – 65%
• Irrigation System, Trickle – Windbreak (441) – 65%
• Irrigation Water Conveyance (430) – 65%
• Pipeline (516) – 65%
• Terraces – (600) – 65%
• Waste Storage Facility (313) – 65%
• Water Well (642) – 65%
• Windbreak/Shelterbelt establishment – 65%

Brush Management will be cost-shared at 65% due to the high cost of the practice when large acreages are in need of brush control.  Dikes, Diversions, Terraces, and Waterways will be cost shared at 65% to offset the high cost and limited financial return for the practice.  Windbreaks and the associated Irrigation System, Trickle will be cost-shared at 65% in an effort to encourage the installation of this important conservation practice.  Irrigation system improvements will be cost-shared at the 65% rate due to the importance of the practices in this area.  Livestock pipeline and water wells will also be included in the higher rate due to their excessive installation costs.  Several practices on the list that will not be cost-shared 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 and Residue Management, No-Till, are the only practices that will be eligible for incentive payments and cost-shared at 100% for a maximum of three years.  Prescribed Grazing will be eligible only when it is used in conjunction with management to improve Lesser Prairie Chicken and Wildlife Habitat.  For Prairie Chicken Incentive, interested producers will be required to defer a pasture (640-acre minimum) from domestic livestock grazing for ten months (August 1st through May 30th) to participate.  In addition, a confirmed active lek site must be within two miles of the enrolled acreage.  See below for the requirements of the Wildlife Habitat resource concern.  Residue Management, No-Till, will provide incentive only to producers who have not tried the practice in the past.

An additional fifteen percent cost-share will be available for all applicants who self-certify that they meet the Limited Resource Producer criteria.  Cost-share rates for those applicants who self-certify that they meet the Beginning Farmer/Beginning Rancher criteria will also be fifteen percent higher than the rate established for non-BF/BR applicants for each practice.  The higher cost-share rates will apply only to the first $30,000 of the contracts in both of these instances.

An incentive payment of $7.50/acre has been established for Prescribed Grazing (528a), in association with protecting/enhancing Lesser Prairie Chicken habitat.

An incentive payment of $40.00 /acre has been established for Residue Management, No-Till (329A).

An incentive payment of $1,000 per plan has been established for developing a Comprehensive Nutrient Management Plan (100).

A $50,000 financial assistance cap has been established for incentive payments.

Please refer to the links for the cost docket and eligible practices to view the final approved practices, cost share rates and practice component costs.

Ranking Criteria:

Ranking Criteria Worksheets were developed and reviewed by the local work group for five identified resource concerns.  The new Wildlife ranking sheet was developed after the Local Work Group meeting by NRCS, SWCD, and NM DGF personnel.  Each worksheet reflects the relative importance of the different sections and items therein. 

Please refer to the ranking criteria links to view the final approved criteria.

Timelines, Evaluation Periods: 

All applications and any supporting documentation must be submitted by January 28, 2005.  Applications will be ranked by March 11, 2005 and sent to the Area Conservationist for review.  Due to the requirement of Lesser Prairie Chicken lek sites for ranking rangeland requests, their completion may be delayed.  Ranking of the rangeland requests will be completed as soon as possible following the bird’s mating season, which normally ends in late April.  All contracts will be completed by April 29, 2005 and approved by the Area Conservationist by May 27, 2005 with the possible exception of those on rangeland, which will be completed as soon as possible thereafter.

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