USDA opens reserved land to harvest
Washington ? In response to widespread drought, the Agriculture Department on Monday opened conservation lands across Missouri and nationwide to emergency haying and grazing.
The agency had already opened up land in 18 hard-hit western states to drought-stricken farmers, and in 19 Missouri counties, but Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman said she hopes to encourage unaffected producers in the rest of the country to help those in need.
USDA pays landowners through the Conservation Reserve Program to make some property off-limits to grazing and farming. Veneman said the agency will cut payments by one-fourth to farmers who use the lands, unless they donate the hay they harvest to other farmers in need or let them use the land for grazing.
The agency has set up a Web site to help producers find or donate hay: www.fsa.usda.gov/
haynet/.
Farm Service Agency offices in each state may choose to limit areas that are opened, but the action could affect millions of acres of land. But farmers’ and ranchers’ groups said land might be too dry to use.
“It’s better than nothing,” said Chris Buechle, executive vice president of the Missouri Cattlemen’s Assn. “It’s marginal at this point in time how useful the land is going to be. It would be nice if they could move the program forward a little quicker in areas that might be able to help. But we appreciate what’s been done.”
The agency has never opened up all the CRP land to haying and grazing, said Gerald Hrdina, chief of conservation for USDA’s Farm Service Agency office in Missouri.
The decision to release CRP acreage had come on a county-by-county basis, in areas where drought was severe. Then in July, USDA opened up all the conservation land in 18 states, including nondrought counties. Neighboring Kansas and Nebraska were included on that list, but not Missouri.
“The bottom line is that farmers and ranchers in these counties are hurting, and some bureaucratic formula should not stop us from getting these farmers the aid they need,” said Rep. Sam Graves, R-Mo., a member of the House Agriculture Committee.
Two other Missouri Republicans, Sen. Kit Bond and Rep. Jo Ann Emerson, also applauded the decision. Producers have until Nov. 30 to apply for the emergency privileges.
Fred Stemme, spokesman for the Missouri Corn Growers Assn., said producers also are hoping for a disaster declaration from Veneman, which would allow them access to low-interest loans to help get through the drought.
“Certainly every little bit helps,” Stemme said.