Landowners in northeast Colorado now have expanded opportunities to voluntarily enroll property in a popular continuous Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) practice over the coming months. Thanks to a new allocation of CRP acres by the USDA’s Farm Service Agency, the State Acres for Wildlife Enhancement (SAFE) practice – Upland Bird – now has 20,000 acres available for enrollment to landowners interested in creating and conserving upland habitat in Kit Carson, Washington, Yuma, Morgan, Phillips, Logan and Sedgwick counties.
“CRP SAFE acres invest in quality habitat for multiple species, the program is open for enrollment until allocations are reached, and the current rental rates are attractive,” stated Bob Hix, regional representative for Pheasants Forever in Colorado. And, if landowners in northeast Colorado have an expiring CRP contract, SAFE is something they should strongly consider.”
Created nearly a decade ago, SAFE practices allowed states to design CRP practices that maintained the program’s hallmark soil and water conservation benefits while targeting specific wildlife species. Because of continued, and in some cases, rapid upland habitat loss, many states tailored their programs to benefit pheasants and quail. The nationwide SAFE allocation is 2.45 million acres with more than 760,000 acres currently available to landowners for enrollment - 20,000 acres have been earmarked for Colorado’s Upland Bird SAFE.
"Colorado Parks and Wildlife is very pleased to have the opportunities given by this announcement,” stated Ken Morgan, private lands program manager for Colorado Parks and Wildlife. “Our biologists and partner biologists look forward to working with landowers to enhance upland habitat for the benefit of both upland birds and producers.”
Enroll Today, Contact a Pheasants Forever Biologist
Pheasants Forever Farm Bill biologists are specialized staff in conservation programs and habitat planning on private lands. Their purpose is to provide landowners technical assistance on voluntary conservation programs through federal, state and local sources. Landowners interested in learning more about Colorado’s State Acres for Wildlife Enhancement practice, or other conservation program opportunities, should contact one of the following Pheasants Forever biologists:
| Jerry Miller |
Logan, Phillips, Sedgwick, East Weld |
|
jmiller@pheasantsforever.org |
(970) 580-5028 |
| Krysten Strong |
Cheyenne, Kit Carson, Washington, Yuma |
|
kstrong@pheasantsforever.org |
(631) 813-0045 |
CRP Continuous Signup
Environmentally desirable land devoted to certain conservation practices may be enrolled in CRP at any time under continuous signup. Offers are automatically accepted provided the land and producer meet certain eligibility requirements and acres are available. Offers for continuous sign-up are not subject to competitive bidding. Continuous sign-up contracts are 10 to 15 years in duration. To offer land for continuous signup, producers or landowners should contact their
Pheasants Forever or Quail Forever Farm Bill wildlife biologist or visit their local
USDA Service Center
About Pheasants Forever
Pheasants Forever, including its quail conservation division,
Quail Forever, is the nation's largest nonprofit organization dedicated to upland habitat conservation. Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever have more than 149,000 members and over 700 local chapters across the United States and Canada. Chapters are empowered to determine how 100 percent of their locally raised conservation funds are spent; the only national conservation organization that operates through this truly grassroots structure. Since creation in 1982, Pheasants Forever has spent $708 million on 517,464 habitat projects benefiting 15.81 million acres nationwide.
Media Contact
Jared Wiklund
(651) 209-4953
jwiklund@pheasantsforever.org