Tag Archives: pheasants forever

New CRP sign-up makes news at National Pheasant Fest

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Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s National Pheasant Fest and Quail Classic in Minneapolis drew 28,855 people during the three-day event, which wrapped up Sunday in the Minneapolis Convention Center.

This year’s event commemorated the nonprofit conservation group’s 30th anniversary.

The big news from this year’s Pheasant Fest occurred Saturday, when Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack formally announced the next general signup for the Conservation Reserve Program. Joining him were U.S. Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Al Franken and U.S. Rep. Collin Peterson, all D-Minn.

According to Pheasants Forever, the new four-week signup is scheduled to begin May 20, providing landowners the chance to enroll the least productive, most environmentally sensitive acres in the program to benefit wildlife, water quality and soils.

The last general signup occurred in the spring of 2012, when nearly 4.5 million acres were offered and 3.9 ultimately were enrolled.

Vilsack on Saturday also said there will be a review of soil rental rates in an effort to keep CRP competitive with current near-record commodity-driven land prices. And plans are in the works to reopen enrollment for Continuous CRP acreage made possible by extending the 2008 Farm Bill through this year.

As part of Continuous CRP, 1 million acres reallocated in 2012 will be made available to some of CRP’s most targeted and effective practices, such as CP38 SAFE and CP33 Buffers.

“Under President Obama’s leadership, USDA has worked with a record number of farmers, ranchers and landowners — more than 500,000 across the nation — to achieve record benefits in soil and water conservation,” Vilsack said in a news release from Pheasants Forever. “By ensuring that CRP remains strong, vibrant and an economically viable option for producers, we can ensure impactful conservation efforts in the years to come — including healthy wildlife habitat in every corner of our nation.”

Dave Nomsen, Pheasants Forever’s vice president of governmental affairs, said the effort to make CRP more financially attractive to producers comes at a crucial time.

“We absolutely needed these tools to be delivered now,” Nomsen said.  “Considering the massive habitat losses experienced as a result of last summer’s drought and the fact producers are planning their spring plantings right now, this was a critical announcement for farmers, hunters and conservationists.

“Improving CRP’s financial viability is critical to making this program successful for our farmer friends.”

Landowners interested in learning more about the upcoming general signup and other aspects of CRP should contact a Pheasants Forever Farm Bill wildlife biologist. In North Dakota, Pheasants Forever’s biologists are:

Rachel Bush (Barnes, La Moure and Stutsman counties): (701) 252-2521 ext. 129 or rbush@pheasantsforever.org.

Matt Olson (Sarget County): (701) 724-3247 ext. 3 or molson@pheasantsforever.org.

Matt Flintrop (Billings, Stark and Hettinger counties): (701) 403-4850 or mflintrop@pheasantsforever.org.

For additional info, contact Nomsen at (320) 834-3076.

The next Pheasants Forever convention is set for Feb. 14-16, 2014 at the Delta Center in Milwaukee, Wis.

 

 

Pheasants Forever urges action on behalf of new Farm Bill

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Pheasants Forever this week issued an “action alert” calling on its members to contact their members of Congress to get a new federal Farm Bill passed.

Dave Nomsen, vice president of government affairs for Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever.

The existing Farm Bill is set to expire at the end of September, and a new Farm Bill is stalled in the House of Representatives after passing both the Senate and the House Agriculture Committee with bipartisan support. The Farm Bill, according to Pheasants Forever, is the “backbone of private lands conservation.”

“Unfortunately, the bill has stalled in the House of Representatives,” Dave Nomsen, vice president of government affairs for Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever, said in a letter to members. “In limbo are programs that greatly benefit wildlife, including an entire suite of Natural Resources Conservation Service programs (long-term easement programs like the Wetlands Reserve Program) and working lands programs such as the Environmental Quality Incentives Program and Conservation Stewardship Programs. The Farm Service Agency’s Conservation Reserve Program and voluntary access programs for sportsmen — that provide abundant wildlife and hunting access to those lands — also hang in the balance. This summer’s disastrous drought has only magnified the need to maintain the Farm Bill’s strong conservation title.”

With Congress set to reconvene in September, Pheasants Forever is asking its supporters to contact their U.S. House representative. Talking points include:

  • Conservation programs such as CRP and WRP that create habitat for wildlife.
  • Voluntary access programs important to your annual hunting trips with family and friends.
  • Working lands conservation programs that support your farm, ranch and/or community.
  • Conservation programs which support jobs in rural America.

“Encourage your Representatives in Congress to pass a Farm Bill NOW, with strong conservation provisions included,” Nomsen writes.

Bismarck ranks No. 2 on list of ‘Top 25 Pheasant Towns’

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Bismarck is the second-best pheasant hunting town in America in a list of the country’s Top 25 Pheasant Towns released this week by Pheasants Forever.

Chamberlain, S.D., placed first on the list, earning this praise from Pheasants Forever:

“For jaw-dropping pheasant numbers, you won’t beat this Missouri River town in south central South Dakota. Part of the famed ‘Golden Triangle’ region (the storied pheasant hunting area from Gregory, Winner to Chamberlain), the pheasant brood counts around Chamberlain have averaged 15.7 birds per mile during the last decade, more than double the statewide average.”

As for Bismarck, Pheasants Forever said it “may be the only population center of 60,000 or more with world-class pheasant hunting just minutes outside of town.”

Also on the list from North Dakota was Mott at No. 7, while Marshall (No. 10), Montevideo (No. 15) and Worthington (No. 20) made the top 25 from Minnesota.

Not surprisingly, perhaps, Chamberlain wasn’t the only South Dakota community to earn a spot on the Pheasants Forever list. Aberdeen weighed in at No. 6, along with Lemmon (No. 14), Mobridge (No. 17), Mitchell (No. 19) and Winner (No. 24).

To see the full list along with responses, some of which take exception to communities included in the rankings, click here: