Summer 2004

Membership Dollars at Work: The Grassland Reserve Program

BACKGROUND
When the Grassland Reserve Act was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives, of the sixteen original co-sponsors, four of the them were Congressmen from Mississippi. Wildlife Mississippi worked extensively with these Congressmen on this innovative and important piece of legislation.

According to Dr. Jeff Clark, President of Wildlife Mississippi, “This legislation would not have been possible without the strong support and hard work by Congressmen Roger Wicker, Bennie Thompson, Ronnie Shows and Chip Pickering. We appreciate their leadership in making sure not only Mississippi, but our Nation, has conservation programs that work and are well-funded.”

The Act authorized the Grassland Reserve Program (GRP). The GRP authorizes the enrollment of 2 million acres. This is the largest prairie restoration program in the nation's history. The GRP provides the technical expertise as well as the financial means to those landowners and groups who have an interest in restoring the native prairies of the state. Grasslands are important for the forage they provide for farming operations, for the wildlife habitat they provide and the improvement of water quality.


The Grassland Reserve Program provides much needed habitat for species such as the bobwhite quail. Photo by Michael Kelly.

The program authorizes the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to purchase either permanent or 30 year easements from landowners in exchange for a cash payment. The program also authorizes the restoration of native grasslands which is particularly important in the Black Belt Prairie of Northeast Mississippi (1,349,120 acres) and the Jackson Prairie in East Central Mississippi (611,200 acres). These grasslands once supported vast populations of bobwhite quail, wild turkey and a variety of species of songbirds.

Early explorers to the prairies of Mississippi described them as “expansive illuminated grassy plains” and “rolling prairie with scattered pine and crabapple thickets.” W. Roberts, writing in the Emigrant's Guide in 1818, described the prairie he saw as “wide spreading plains, of a level, or gently waving land, with skirts of rich interval wood land; and exhibiting, in the month of May, rich cast, and has the appearance of great fertility.”

Early settlement and intensive cultivation have severely degraded the soils of these prairies. Overgrazing and intensive agriculture have resulted in the loss of valuable topsoil as well as serious erosion. Excessive grazing and the exclusion of fire have allowed the expansion of Eastern Red Cedar and other invasive species. Today, less that one percent of the Blackland Prairie still remains. Most of the prairie is in degraded forest or agricultural production. However, some prairie remnants can be found in cemeteries, 16th section lands and on the Tombigbee and Bienville National Forests.

For more information on Mississippi's native prairies, see the article titled Mississippi, The Prairie State on page 14 of this magazine.

HOW THE PROGRAM WORKS
Applications for the GRP may be filed for an easement or rental agreement with the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) or the Farm Service Agency (FSA) at any time.

Participants voluntarily limit future use of the land while retaining the right to conduct common grazing practices, produce hay, mow or harvest for seed production (subject to certain restrictions during the nesting season of bobwhite quail and other species of birds that are in significant decline or those that are protected under Federal or State law), conduct controlled burning and construct firebreaks and fences.

The program offers several enrollment options. The permanent easement option involves a conservation easement in perpetuity. Easement payments for this option equal the fair market value, less the grazing value of the land encumbered by the easement. These values will be determined using an appraisal.

With the 30 year easement, the USDA will provide an easement payment equal to 30 percent of the fair market value of the land, less the grazing value of the land for the period during which the land is encumbered by the easement.

For both easement options, the USDA will provide all administrative costs associated with recording the easement, including appraisal fees, survey costs, title insurance and recording fees. Easement payments may be provided, at the participant's request, in lump sum or annual payments (equal or unequal amounts) for up to 10 years.
With the rental agreement option, participants may choose a 10 year, 15 year, 20 year or 30 year contract. The USDA will provide annual payments in an amount that is not more than 75 percent of the grazing value of the land covered by the agreement for the life of the agreement. Payments will be disbursed on the agreement anniversary date each year.

If restoration is determined necessary by the NRCS, a restoration agreement will be incorporated within the rental agreement or easement. Wildlife Mississippi and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service may provide up to 100 percent of the restoration costs on lands in the Black Belt and Jackson Prairies that the landowner desires to restore back to native prairie using either the 30-year or perpetual easement option. Participants may contribute to the cost of restoration.

Landowners who can provide clear title are eligible to participate for either easement option. Landowners and others who have general control of the acreage may submit an application for a rental agreement.

There is no national maximum limitation on the amount of land that may be offered for the GRP. However, there is a minimum requirement established in law. Offers for enrollment must contain at least 40 contiguous acres.

The Adjusted Gross Income provision of the 2002 Farm Bill impacts eligibility for the GRP and several other 2002 Farm Bill programs. Individuals or entities that have an average adjusted gross income exceeding $2.5 million for the three tax years immediately proceeding the year the contract is approved are not eligible to receive program benefits or payments. However, an exemption is provided in cases where 75 percent of the adjusted gross income is derived from farming, ranching or forestry operations.


The Grassland Reserve Program can contribute significantly to the improvement of water quality in streams and rivers such as the Tombigbee River. Photo by the Mississippi Fish and Wildlife Foundation.

Eligible land includes grassland or land that contains forbs or shrubs (including improved rangeland and pastureland); and grassland or land that is located in an area that historically has been dominated by grassland, forbs and shrubs and has potential to provide habitat for animal or plant populations of significant ecological value if the land is retained in its current use or restored to a natural condition. Incidental lands may be included to allow for the efficient administration of an agreement or easement. The emphasis is on the Black Belt and Jackson Prairies.

FOR MORE INFORMATION
If you need more information about the GRP or you would like to restore native prairie grasses on your land in the Black Belt or Jackson prairies, please contact your local USDA Service Center, listed in the telephone book under U.S. Department of Agriculture or Daniel Coggin of Wildlife Mississippi's Northeast Mississippi Field Office by telephone (662-256-4486) or email (dcoggin@wildlifemiss.org).