Give Us This Day Our Daily Rant: Sportsmen beware -- CRP under fire again, and we can do something about it
It’s time for sportsmen in North Dakota, South Dakota and Minnesota to once again have their voices heard. The Conservation Reserve Program is being threatened – perhaps “further threatened” is the proper term – and you can do something about it.
The CRP program is the most successful conservation program in modern times. It is the single biggest reason why pheasant numbers have ballooned in North Dakota, South Dakota and even Minnesota in the last 10-15 years. Millions of acres of marginal farmland have been set aside, taken out of production, and that’s led to a boon of habitat that’s been a boon for all kinds of wildlife.
Unfortunately for those of us who like to see CRP blanketing the landscape, over 4.2 million acres have expired since 2005. Another 21 million acres are set to expire over the next five years.
Some would like to see much of that expiration happen must faster. In a U.S. Department of Agriculture listening session last night in Moorhead, the USDA said it is considering a proposal to drop CRP enrollment next year from its Farm Bill-approved level of 32 million acres, down to 24 million acres. That is a loss of 8 million acres that should not happen.
According to a representative of Pheasants Forever with whom I spoke today, USDA is pitching this proposal for a couple of reasons.
First is short-term budget gain. In these tough economic times, the feds see fewer CRP payments as a way to slash budget. This doesn’t take into account long-term economic impact, though, if you’re talking about crop insurance and other higher costs associated with bringing more marginal cropland into production.
Second is pressure from big-time grain dealers and those at the food-production end, who would benefit from more acres in production and more commodities on the market. The Pheasants Forever rep said companies like Sara Lee and pizza-dough makers are among those loudest voices who want to see CRP acreage reduced.
To be clear: This is not a done deal. USDA has two proposals on the table – keeping things as they are for 2010 (that’s the 32 million acre figure) or reducing CRP to 24 million acres. That is the purpose of these so-called listening sessions – to get public input.
About 80 people showed up in Moorhead last night and most were pro-conservation, pro-CRP. That is exactly what’s needed. USDA needs to hear that we overwhelmingly support keeping CRP acreage at the highest levels possible.
USDA is taking public input until Oct. 19, so there is still plenty of opportunity to have your voice heard. Take five minutes and send an e-mail or fax to the feds in support of CRP. As Pheasants Forever says, it doesn’t have to be a long and detailed message. You just need to tell USDA who you are and why CRP is important to you.
I sent an e-mail earlier today telling USDA that I support not only stable CRP acres, but expanded CRP acres, because the habitat has improved wildlife populations across North Dakota, South Dakota and Minnesota – not only game species, but non-game species as well – and that is what’s important to me.
Not scientific. Not economic. Very simplistic, actually. But I made my voice heard. You should, too.
Here are options where you can voice your support for CRP, according to Pheasants Forever:
· Mail comments to: CRP SEIS, c/o TEC Inc. 8 San Jose Dr., Suite 3-B, Newport News, VA 23606
· Fax comments to: (757) 594-1469.
Mike McFeely (mike@kfgo.com) can be heard from 2-5 p.m. Central Monday through Friday on "The Mike McFeely Show" on KFGO-AM 790. The show goes statewide in North Dakota at 3 p.m. on KFYR 550 in Bismarck and KCJB in Minot. Mike McFeely's blog can be read by clicking here. You can follow Mike on Twitter at www.twitter.com/mikemcfeely
November 20, 2009
