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Kansas State Technical Committee Minutes - December 2002

Kansas State Technical Committee (KTC) Meeting
Wednesday - December 4, 2002
9:30 - NRCS Conference Center
747 Duvall - Salina, Kansas

Harold L. Klaege, State Conservationist, Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) gave the welcome and opening remarks. Introductions were made.

Harold Klaege gave an overview of implementing the Farm Bill 2002, and the NRCS 2002 Program Accomplishments.

Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP)

Gaye Benfer, Soil Conservationist, Conservation Programs Staff, NRCS, presented the recommendation of the EQIP subcommittee on distribution of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2003 Kansas EQIP allocation by resource concern.

It was the consensus of the KTC to recommend distribution of the FY 2003 Kansas EQIP Allocation by resource concern as follows:

  • Air Quality - 10 percent
  • Grazing Land Health - 30 percent
  • Water Quality - 50 percent
  • Water Quantity - 10 percent

John Piskac, Area Resource Conservationist detailed to the Conservation Programs Staff, NRCS, presented background information on FY 2003 EQIP area allocation distribution.

It was the consensus of the KTC to recommend the FY 2003 EQIP area allocation distribution.

The following document requires Adobe Acrobat.

Adobe Acrobat DocumentArea Allocation Distribution (135 KB)

John Piskac also reviewed the recommendation from the EQIP subcommittee on EQIP evaluation and assessment methods. It was the consensus of the KTC to recommend that deductive indicators (i.e., practices planned and applied, producers assisted, and performance measures) be used to evaluate and assess EQIP success.

The KTC also recommended that a group be assembled to devise an assessment methodology for Kansas conservation programs. Don Snethen, Kansas Department of Health and Environment, and Dale Lambley, Kansas Department of Agriculture, volunteered to serve on the Evaluation and Assessment Subcommittee.

Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP)

Rodney D. Egbarts, Soil Conservationist, NRCS, reviewed the WRP subcommittee’s recommendation on 2003 WRP implementation. There were no recommended changes to the ranking worksheet, or eligible conservation practices.

The following document requires Adobe Acrobat.

Adobe Acrobat DocumentWRP Worksheet (323 KB)

Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP)

Rod Egbarts also reviewed the WHIP subcommittee’s recommendation on 2003 WHIP implementation.

Based on concerns, it was the consensus of the KTC to direct the WHIP subcommittee to complete additional work and act on behalf of the full committee on the following items:

  • Ranking worksheet
  • Eligible conservation practices
  • WHIP contract funding limitation
  • State WHIP plan update

Meeting adjourned at 2:00 p.m.

The WHIP subcommittee met on December 11, 2002, and provided the following recommendations:

  • Revise the WHIP ranking worksheet.

The following document requires Adobe Acrobat.

Adobe Acrobat DocumentRevised WHIP Worksheet (211 KB)

  • Set a $3,500 cost-share limitation on ponds (practice code 378).  Ponds should only be an eligible conservation practice if the pond results in the fencing of a riparian area that limits livestock access to a stream.
  • Set a $10,000 WHIP contract limitation that can be waived by the state conservationist in the event an offer provides exceptional wildlife benefits. The following criteria were suggested for determining projects with exceptional wildlife benefits.
    1. The application must score a minimum of 30 points in Item A-1, the ecological section of the WHIP ranking worksheet.
    2. The following project types could provide exceptional wildlife merit and may justify exceeding the $10,000 limit:
      • Remove livestock from a riparian area
      • Convert cool season grass to warm season native grass
      • Wetland restoration
      • Establish native grass or shrub buffers
      • Tree removal from native prairie
      • Prairie restoration (planting native grass and forb mix)
      • Establish or enhance habitat for threatened and endangered species or species in need of conservation
  • Update the Kansas WHIP plan to reflect the following priorities:
    • Grassland birds with emphasis on bobwhite quail, ring-neck pheasant, and prairie chicken (lesser and greater)
    • Threatened and endangered species and species in need of conservation
    • Natural communities to include prairies, wetlands and riparian areas
  • Distribute WHIP funds through administrative area allocations.
  • Allow continuous approvals of WHIP application based on a minimum level threshold ranking score being met.  The threshold method of application approval would not be used for applications greater than $10,000.

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