Kansas and Nebraska Farmers Submit Bids to Enroll in New USDA Practice
A new, innovative USDA Conservation Reserve Program SAFE practice lets landowners submit an offer for the annual payment amount received to restore playas and plant a native grass buffer.
On January 11, the newly-established Migratory Bird, Butterfly, and Pollinator Habitat State Acres for Wildlife Enhancement (Migratory Bird SAFE) practice was announced in Kansas and Nebraska, with up to 10,000 acres available for enrollment in each state. This is exciting news for a couple of reasons.
First, although they are not mentioned in the name of the practice, this program is entirely focused on conserving playas, a critical source of water for the wildlife and people in western Kansas and Nebraska. The name of the program gives you a hint at how important these temporary wetlands are to the region’s wildlife — including birds, butterflies, and other pollinators — but playas also provide important benefits for the people who live in this region. Research has shown that properly functioning playas are a primary source of recharge for the Ogallala Aquifer — contributing up to 95 percent of inflow to the aquifer and improving the quality of that water.
Second, this practice isn’t a ‘one size fits all’ program. It was designed after listening to landowners talk about their considerations and concerns about managing playas within their operations. Under the new Migratory Bird SAFE, the conservation payment is set by the producers, who determine the amount of money they need to conserve the playas on their land and submit a bid.
Market-based Incentives
The Migratory Bird SAFE is designed to provide private landowners an innovative, market-based financial incentive for restoring playas and planting a native grass upland buffer. Using a reverse auction, landowners will be able to submit an offer — up to a maximum amount of $300 per acre — for the amount they are willing to accept as an annual payment, for a period of 10–15 years, through the USDA Conservation Reserve Program.
“In a reverse auction, annual payments are determined by landowners, with bids based on the values and factors that are important to each individual,” said Rod Winkler, director of conservation programs for Kansas Farm Service Agency, during the Kansas announcement. “Submitted bids are based upon landowner values and will be evaluated in a competitive process. We will be looking for the lowest, most reasonable benefit-weighted bid amounts.”
This new SAFE is a grassroots, cooperative conservation effort that was jointly proposed by Playa Lakes Joint Venture (PLJV) and Rainwater Basin Joint Venture (RWBJV) after listening to what producers had to say about playas. In 2013, with funding from the Great Plains Landscape Conservation Cooperative, the Joint Ventures conducted 13 landowner focus groups throughout a six-state region, which led to recommendations for designing conservation programs that appeal to landowners, including higher compensation for enrolling their land in a conservation program.
“We know that every decision by every landowner is a personal one, driven by unique experiences and circumstances. Understanding those decisions can only be appreciated through personal conversations like the ones that happened in the focus groups,” says PLJV Coordinator Mike Carter. “But the real success comes when we can take that information and create a program, like the new Migratory Bird SAFE, that is a direct response to what we heard from those farmers and ranchers.”
During the announcement in Nebraska, producer Roric Paulman praised the partners for developing an economically viable conservation program with programmatic flexibility.
“Nebraska’s producers recognize the importance of good stewardship, but conservation programs have to be economically viable and complement the farm operation or they simply can’t be implemented,” said Paulman.
Clean Water for Wildlife and People
Playas are relatively small, round, shallow depressions that hold water from rainfall and runoff, creating temporary bodies of water. In the western Great Plains, playas are a main source of water for wildlife, supporting 235 wildlife species. They provide much-needed rest stops and food to migrating waterfowl, cranes, and shorebirds, as well as resident prairie birds.
“These wetlands support millions of migratory birds during their biannual migrations from the wintering grounds to the breeding grounds,” said RWBJV Coordinator Andy Bishop. “Acres enrolled in this program will also serve to improve water quality and seasonally recharge groundwater in the Ogallala Aquifer.”
According to scientists, playas are a primary source of groundwater recharge to the aquifer, with an average rate of about three inches per year. Playas are also water filtration systems — keeping fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides out of the groundwater and providing clean water for the people who live in the region.
As he concluded his remarks on Jan. 11, Winkler reminded those in attendance that “by restoring our playas, we can help them continue to work for the people and wildlife of Kansas and Nebraska — for generations to come.”
The Migratory Bird SAFE is a grassroots, cooperative conservation effort that involves a number of partners in Kansas and Nebraska including USDA Farm Service Agency, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, US Fish & Wildlife Service Partners for Fish & Wildlife, Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks & Tourism, Kansas Water Office, Nebraska Association of Natural Resource Districts, Nebraska Game & Parks Commission, Nebraska Cattlemen Association, Nebraska and Kansas Wildlife Federation, Ducks Unlimited, The Nature Conservancy, Audubon of Kansas, and Nebraska Audubon. The landowner focus groups that provided valuable information in the development of the proposal was funded by the Great Plains Landscape Conservation Cooperative and conducted by DJ Case and Associates. The first bidding period for the Migratory Bird SAFE is expected to open soon.
