Friday May 27 Ag News

Lower Elkhorn NRD receives grant to provide cost-share on flow meters

     The Lower Elkhorn Natural Resources District (LENRD) recently received a grant from Nebraska’s new Water Sustainability Fund (WSF).  Nebraska’s Natural Resources Commission approved nearly $11.5 million in projects, with $900,000 being awarded to the LENRD for water and soil conservation.  The LENRD will provide a match of $600,000.  This will allow the district to have $1.5 million available for cost-share assistance on irrigation flow meters.

     At their May board meeting, the LENRD Board of Directors voted to utilize the funding to offer incentive payments of $250 per flow meter to producers who are approved for the Environmental Quality Incentive Program (EQIP) funding.  They also agreed to offer payments of $500 per flow meter to producers who apply for the LENRD cost-share by June 30, 2017, if they are not receiving any other incentives or cost-share.  LENRD General Manager, Mike Sousek, said, “The deadline to have flow meters installed on all irrigation wells is January 1, 2018.  The cost-share is available for producers who get signed up before June of next year.”  Producers are asked to sign-up through their county Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) office to apply for the LENRD cost-share.

     The board also approved a contract with Aqua Geo Frameworks (AGF) for the 2016 Airborne Electromagnetic (AEM) project that will provide aquifer framework mapping across approximately 608 miles of the district, including portions of Cedar, Dixon, Knox, Madison, Pierce, Platte, Stanton, and Wayne counties.  Sousek added, “By continuing the flights, we can work on defining more aquifers and work with the UNL Conservation & Survey Division to complete an atlas of our district.  We have received $250,000 for this project from the WSF, and we will be matching up to $167,000 to continue the mapping project.”

     In other action, the board voted to provide a $2,197.70 grant for the Madison Public School’s Watershed Dynamics Program.  The request came from the school for their on-going sampling program of Taylor and Union Creeks.  The program is in its sixth year and provides hands-on learning for many students during the summer months.

     Funding was also requested by the Northeast Nebraska Weed Management Area, a group organized under the Northeast Nebraska RC&D, to match LB1038 funding for controlling invasive plant species.  The group is requesting funding from four area NRDs to control invasive plant species in the Elkhorn River Basin.  The board approved $5,000 for the project.

     A public hearing was also held, relating to the proposed amendments to the LENRD’s Erosion & Sediment Control Program.  The adopted changes will be added to the plan and can be viewed on the district’s website.

     The next board meeting will be held on Thursday, June 23 at 7:30 p.m. in the Lifelong Learning Center on the campus of Northeast Community College in Norfolk.  Visit the LENRD website to sign up for emails from the district.  Like us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter.  www.lenrd.org



UNL RECEIVES GRANTS TO EVALUATE LAND CONSERVATION STEWARDSHIP

    Simanti Banerjee, assistant professor of agricultural economics at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, has received a four-year, $498,641 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to study the effectiveness of conservation auction policies.

    The grant will initiate a new research collaboration between UNL and Fordham University in New York City.

    Agricultural lands have the potential to deliver a wide variety of benefits to the environment. In an effort to preserve natural habitat, the USDA has implemented policies, such as the Conservation Reserve Program. In exchange for a yearly rental payment, farmers enrolled in CRP agree to remove environmentally sensitive land from agricultural production.

    However, the cost-effectiveness of these policies is uncertain. Fund disbursals are subject to budget constraints and often landowners end up being overcompensated. The USDA implements reverse auctions under the CRP to mitigate such overcompensation.

    "Since these payments are an integral part of the agricultural system of the U.S., scientific investigation is important to identify auction design features which contribute positively to cost-effectiveness, while generating environmental and economic benefits for agricultural communities and society at large," Banerjee said.

    Banerjee's project will use economic experiments to focus on the impact of information about the environmental effects of land use actions, auction format, social and community ties and individuals' tendencies to seek peer approval. Her experiments will involve real people making choices on the basis of which they will be paid. The findings will provide insights about human behavior under changing conditions.

    The grant was made through the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative Foundational program, administered by USDA's National Institute of Food and Agriculture. The program supports projects that sustain and enhance agricultural and related activities in rural areas, protect the environment, enhance quality of life and alleviate poverty.

    UNL students will play a critical role in the project, according to Banerjee.

    "The economic experiments will serve as a means to engage university students and stakeholders in experiential learning, providing them with a keener appreciation for human decision making," she said.

    The role that empathy plays in decision making is the focus of an additional grant awarded to Banerjee and Mark Burbach, environmental scientist in the UNL School of Natural Resources, along with colleagues at the University of Michigan-Dearborn. The two-year, $80,258 grant from the Center for Behavioral and Experimental Agri-Environmental Research, will evaluate the effectiveness of empathetic messaging in conservation stewardship program participation.

    The research team will work with the Natural Resources Conservation Service to send letters to farm operators, inviting them to participate in a Conservation Stewardship Program in exchange for a financial incentive. Previous economic experimental research conducted by the team suggests that introducing empathetic messaging into that letter could result in a higher adoption of conservation practices.

    "We hope to see a much higher adoption in conservation when using a combination of empathy and financial incentives," Burbach said.

    The project is one of 12 behavioral science projects awarded by the Center for Behavioral and Experimental Agri-Environmental Research that aim to explain the complex human responses to agri-environmental policies implemented by the government, with the goal of helping to design better public programs.



USDA Announces More Than $8 Million in Payments to Support the Production of Advanced Biofuel

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced today that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is investing $8.8 million to boost the production of advanced biofuels and sustain jobs at renewable energy facilities in 39 states. USDA continues to lead the way in promotion of advanced biofuel production, from implementing the revised Farm Bill bio-refinery program to the launching of the Green Fleet with the Department of the Navy and developing the Biogas Opportunities Roadmap, which outlines voluntary strategies to overcome barriers to expansion and development of a robust biogas industry within the United States.

"Advanced biofuels expand America's energy options and increase our sources of homegrown, renewable energy," Vilsack said. "These payments not only help to spur biofuel production, but also protect the environment and help create jobs by building a renewable energy economy in rural areas."

The funding is being provided through USDA's Advanced Biofuel Payment Program, which was established in the 2008 Farm Bill. Payments are made to biofuels producers based on the amount of advanced biofuels produced from renewable biomass, other than corn kernel starch. Examples of eligible feedstocks include crop residue, food and yard waste, vegetable oil, and animal fat. Through this program to date, USDA has made $308 million in payments to 382 producers in 47 states and territories. These payments have produced enough biofuel to provide more than 391 billion kilowatt hours of electric energy.

Ag Processing, Inc. headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska will receive a $486,725 payment for biodiesel production from soybean, canola and waste vegetable oils at their St. Joseph, Missouri, Sargeant Bluffs, Iowa, and Algona, Iowa production facilities.  

Quad County Corn Processors Co-Op of Galva, Iowa, is receiving a $2,011 payment to convert more than 39 million gallons of corn kernel fiber into 660,000 gallons of cellulosic ethanol. The company converts the fiber into ethanol and other products using a process developed by its own research team.

Secretary Vilsack has recognized the biobased economy as one of the pillars that strengthen rural communities. Through the Advanced Biofuel Payment Program and other USDA programs, USDA is working to support the research, investment and infrastructure necessary to build a strong biofuels industry that creates jobs and broadens the range of feedstocks used to produce renewable fuel. Over the course of this Administration, USDA has invested $332 million to accelerate research on renewable energy ranging from genomic research on bioenergy feedstock crops, to development of biofuel conversion processes and costs/benefit estimates of renewable energy production.

In January, Secretary Vilsack joined Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus to launch the Great Green Fleet, and witnessed destroyer USS William P. Lawrence (DDG 110) being replenished with advanced biofuel made from waste beef fat. Aviation biofuels, like those used by the Navy, are creating new markets for energy created from agricultural waste products.

USDA has also supported efforts to build six new biorefineries to produce advanced biofuels in Louisiana, Georgia, Oregon, Nevada, North Carolina, and Iowa, in addition to three existing facilities in New Mexico, Michigan and Florida.

Investments in renewable energy and the biobased economy are a leading part of USDA's commitment to mitigating climate change and promoting a clean-energy economy. This month, the Department is examining what a changing climate means to agriculture and how USDA is working to reduce greenhouse gases. 



ISU Field Days Provide Insight into Crops Research

Iowa State University Research and Demonstration Farms and ISU Extension and Outreach will highlight current research during early summer field days. Research and Demonstration Farm research is being conducted on crops and soil health, cover crops, water quality and drainage.

The research farms host field days to give the public a chance to see research projects in progress and talk with researchers and extension staff involved with the experiments.
Seven field days in June and July will highlight crop and soil research

    June 21 – McNay Memorial Research and Demonstration Farm (45249 170th Avenue, Chariton) – 12:45-4 p.m. or 5:30-8:30 p.m.
    June 21 – Allee Demonstration Farm (2030 640th Street, Newell) - June 21 time TBD
    June 21 – Muscatine Island Research and Demonstration Farm (111 North Street, Fruitland) - 5:30 p.m.
    June 23 – Southeast Research and Demonstration Farm (3115 Louisa-Washington Road, Crawfordsville) - 1 p.m.
    June 23 – Northern Research and Demonstration Farm (310 S. Main Street, Kanawha) - 9 a.m.-12 p.m.
    June 28 – Northeast Research and Demonstration Farm (3321 290th Street, Nashua) - 1-4:30 p.m.
    July 13 – Northwest Research and Demonstration Farm (6320 500th Street, Sutherland) - 10 a.m.

All field days are open to the public. No registration is required. Field days are held regardless of weather and many of the events serve a meal. A full schedule of 2016 field days is linked to the research farm website at: http://farms.ag.iastate.edu/ .

Contact the research farm in your area or the ISU Research and Demonstration Farm office (515-294-5045) for specific details on each event.



2016 Hay & Forage Expo to Focus on Education

The Hay & Forage Expo returns to central Iowa for the 30th annual event. The show is scheduled for June 22 and 23 at the Central Iowa Expo facility located just east of Boone, Iowa. The Central Iowa Expo site is also the host for the 2016 Farm Progress Show which will be held in late August.

The Hay & Forage Expo has always been known as the best place to see the latest hay and forage equipment and an expanded list of programs has been added to the agenda for this year’s show.

“Farmers who attend the Hay & Forage Expo love the demonstrations and enjoy watching the equipment in action. We wanted to expand on that and offer educational programs as well,” says Matt Jungmann, events manager for Penton Agriculture. “Two of our education programs are hot topics in agriculture, drones and the weather. Producers want to use drones to improve field scouting and we want to help them understand the regulations and restrictions of this type of technology. And weather is always a crucial subject for farmers and they want to learn about weather trends and how they will affect the growing season.”

“Another program we are excited to offer this year is a hay auction,” comments Jungmann. Scheduled for Wednesday only, the hay auction will be conducted by the American Ag Video Auction. 

All presentations will be held at the show site in the Morton Building located at Sixth Street and Central Avenue.
 
Educational Program and Auction Schedule
11:15 - Weather Outlook for Crops 2016 and Beyond presented by Prof. S. Elwynn Taylor, Iowa State University.  A very strong El Nino that reminds us of 1983 and 1988 has folks in the Corn Belt a bit on edge in 2016.  But, the El Nino event of 1998 was a "good" crop event.  Weather records and forecasts are giving us ever-better ways to anticipate how our crops will turn out.

12:15 – The Future of Commercial Drone Operations presented by Philip A. K. Stiles, Esq. The use of drones in the agriculture industry has exploded over the last five years. Now with the FAA catching up on regulating drone use, Stiles will explain current regulations, what you need to know if you are using a drone service or flying your own drone and talk about the future of drone use in the ag industry.

3:00 – Hay Auction – WEDNESDAY ONLY. Conducted by American Ag Video Auction. American Ag Video Auction is an online hay marketing company that streams live, real-time auctions. Auction personnel go to a producer’s farm or ranch, video and test hay, and then market it by utilizing the live real-time video auction platform. American Ag Video Auction is committed to building lasting relationships with their buyers and sellers. They provide an innovative and professional way to market hay, while expanding and creating market opportunities worldwide.
 
New Products and Equipment
Sponsored by Penton Agriculture's local farm publications, The Farmer, Wisconsin Agriculturist and Wallaces Farmer, the Hay & Forage Expo provides easy access to the new hay and forage technology with an extensive exhibit area and working field demonstrations conducted throughout each show day.

The two-day hay extravaganza showcases mowing, conditioning, baling and hay handling demonstrations on prime alfalfa acres. Visitors have multiple opportunities to compare the most popular equipment brands operating side by side under actual field conditions.

A 10-acre exhibit field highlights displays from the major and shortline specialty manufacturers with a focus on products aimed at boosting the efficiency and profitability of hay and forage productions. The Hay & Forage Expo is a one-stop shopping and learning venue for hay and forage producers. Visitors can examine the latest balers, forage choppers, disk mower conditioners, tedders, rakes, mergers, bale carriers, forage seed and more hay production products.
 
Make Plans to Attend
The 30th annual Hay & Forage Expo will be held June 22 and 23, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Central Iowa Expo facility near Boone, Iowa. The site is located west of I-35 on Hwy. 30; the show's website features a map and detailed driving directions. Admission is free; parking is $10 per vehicle. For more information, visit HayExpo.com or call (866) 264-7469. The public is welcome.



EPA Plans National Public Hearing for Renewable Fuel Standard Program in Kansas City, Mo., June 9

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency  is announcing a public hearing to be held in Kansas City, Missouri on June 9, 2016, for the proposed rule "Renewable Fuel Standard Program: Standards for 2017 and Biomass-Based Diesel Volume for 2018." The hearing will provide an opportunity for the public to comment on the proposal. The hearing will begin at 9:00 a.m. and will end when all parties present who wish to speak have had an opportunity to do so. All persons wanting to speak should register in advance, by May 31, 2016.  To register to speak at the meeting, or for further information, e-mail RFS_Hearing@epa.gov. 

Oral comments and supporting information presented at the public hearing will be considered with the same weight as written statements and supporting information submitted during the public comment period. Written comments must be received by the last day of the comment period (July 11, 2016) and submitted to one of the addresses listed in the notice of proposed rulemaking. For more information about the public hearing see the Federal Register Notice: https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2016-05-25/pdf/2016-12358.pdf

The pre-publication version of the proposed rulemaking can be found at https://www.epa.gov/renewable-fuel-standard-program/standards-2017-and-biomass-based-diesel-volume-2018-documents

The Clean Air Act requires EPA to set annual RFS volume requirements for four categories of biofuels. By displacing fossil fuels, biofuels help reduce greenhouse gas emissions and help strengthen energy security. EPA implements the program in consultation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Energy.



Statement from Agriculture Secretary Vilsack on the Latest Quarterly Agricultural Trade Forecast

American farmers and ranchers continue to compete and win in foreign markets. Even in today’s environment of lower commodity prices, abundant global supplies and a strong U.S. dollar, exports remain a key pillar supporting U.S. agriculture and rural communities. Today’s quarterly agricultural trade forecast shows the resilience of our agricultural sector despite the economic headwinds. Export volumes continue to post near-record totals across many key products.

Oilseed and product exports are forecast at $26.1 billion, up $700 million, and grain and feed exports are forecast at $27.7 billion, up $500 million from the February forecast. The report also underscores the importance of creating new export opportunities for our producers by knocking down tariffs and opening new markets through free trade agreements.

Exports comprise 20 percent of U.S. farm income, drive rural economic activity, and support more than one million American jobs. We have the opportunity to expand those benefits even further through passage of new trade agreements such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership. A report published by the International Trade Commission just last week shows that the TPP will significantly expand U.S. exports to some of the world’s fastest-growing economies and add an additional $10 billion to annual U.S. agricultural output by 2032.

Trade agreements such as the TPP are key to a stable and prosperous farm economy. They can help boost global demand for U.S. farm and food products, increase U.S. market share versus our competitors in key markets, and ensure that our farmers and ranchers have stable and predictable markets for the quality goods they produce.  Congress should move quickly to approve the TPP.



USDA Extends Deadline for Recording Farm Structure

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced a one-time, 30-day extension to the June 1 deadline for recording farm organization structures related to Actively Engaged in Farming determinations. This date is used to determine the level of interest an individual holds in a legal entity for the applicable program year. Farming operations will now have until July 1 to complete their restructuring or finalize any operational change. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued the extension in response to farmers and ranchers who requested more time to comply, and to assure that everyone has enough time to provide their information under the new rules.

"Most farming and ranching organizations have been able to comply with the actively engaged rule," said Vilsack. "This one-time extension should give producers who may still need to update their farm structure information the additional time to do so."

The 2014 Farm Bill provided the Secretary with the direction and authority to amend the Actively Engaged in Farming rules related to management. The final rule established limits on the number of individuals who can qualify as actively engaged using only management. Only one payment limit for management is allowed under the rule, with the ability to request up to two additional qualifying managers operations for large and complex operations.

The rule does not apply to farming operations comprised entirely of family members. The rule also does not change the existing regulations related to contributions of land, capital, equipment or labor, or the existing regulations related to landowners with a risk in the crop or to spouses. Producers that planted fall crops have until the 2017 crop year to comply with the new rules. The payment limit associated with Farm Service Agency farm payments is generally limited annually to $125,000 per individual or entity.