USDA’s State Acres for Wildlife Enhancement Program Targets Louisiana’s Coast
LAFAYETTE, La. May 28, 2008 – USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) and partners of the Gulf Coast Joint Venture are promoting a new initiative of the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) to restore 3,500 acres of native grasslands and shallow wetlands in southwest Louisiana. This initiative is part of the USDA’s recently announced State Acres For wildlife Enhancement (SAFE) program designed to address habitat needs of wildlife species whose populations are declining or are otherwise of social and economic importance.
Native grasslands once covered over two
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Mottled duck pair- Marc Epstein |
million acres in southwest Louisiana, but now only a few hundred acres remain. Grasslands and shallow wetlands provide valuable habitat for the mottled duck, northern bobwhite, short-eared owl, Henslow’s sparrow and other bird species.
Participation in the SAFE program is confined to certain watersheds in the following parishes: Acadia, Calcasieu, Cameron, Evangeline, Jefferson Davis, Lafayette, St. Landry and Vermilion. This region represents the historic range of coastal prairie and offers the greatest potential to restore grassland and shallow water habitats for prairie-dependent species.
To be eligible, lands must be located within one of the affected watersheds and meet basic CRP eligibility requirements. Landowners should check with their local FSA office to determine individual eligibility.
FSA offers a $100/acre sign-up payment, up to 90 percent cost-share for eligible practice installation costs, 15 years of annual rental payments and maintenance costs, and up to 50 percent cost-share of required mid-contract management practices. Program sign-up began at FSA offices on May 5 and will continue until the target acreage has been enrolled. Contracts will be held for a minimum of 14 years, but shall not exceed 15 years.
“In addition to its benefits for waterfowl and other bird species, this project offers landowners an excellent opportunity to diversify their land-based income,” says DU Manager of Conservation Programs, Bob Dew.
This initiative partners private landowners with the FSA, Natural Resources Conservation Service, and numerous other conservation organizations including Ducks Unlimited, Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, The Nature Conservancy, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
With more than a million supporters, Ducks Unlimited is the world’s largest and most effective wetland and waterfowl conservation organization with almost 12 million acres conserved. The United States alone has lost more than half of its original wetlands - nature’s most productive ecosystem - and continues to lose more than 80,000 wetland acres each year.
Andi Cooper 601-206-5463 acooper@ducks.org
For more information on the Conservation Reserve Program Gulf Coast Prairies SAFE go to: http://www.fsa.usda.gov
For an interactive animation of coastal wetland loss go to:
http://www.nola.com/speced/lastchance/multimedia/flash.ssf?flashlandloss1.swf
For more information on the Gulf Coastal Prairie go to: http://www.ducks.org/conservation/initiative28.aspx