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West Virginia NRCS Updates

Farm Bill Programs

CSP

  • Seventy-three (73) of seventy-five (75) 2006 applications are funded.
  •  $171,427.00 paid out in 2006 funds.

EQIP

  • Ended the ranking period with 903 applications in ProTracts, with an estimated value of $12.8 million.
  • 244 contracts funded with $5,519,765.00 of available funds.

WHIP

  • Ended ranking with 183 applications, with an estimated value of $1.6 million.
  • 80 contracts funded with $924,465.50 in available funds.

AMA

  • Ended ranking with 22 applications in the Chesapeake Bay watershed with an estimated value of $276,263.
  •  Original allocation of $146,234.00 plus additional allocation of $108,430.00 has currently funded 35 contracts at $186,090.50.
  • Additional contracts being developed.

GRP

  • Grassland Reserve Program is at the funding cap so no new applications will be accepted. We are working to finalize the funded applications in FY 2005 and to finalize the 2003 and 2004 easements.

WRP

  • Currently seeking construction bids on Upshur County site to complete restoration.
  • Appraisals requested on sites in Hancock and Hampshire Counties.
  • Revising plans on Taylor County site; hope to complete construction this fall.
  • Three sites in Jefferson County:
    • One completed this spring.
    • One site to finish restoration with seeding this summer.
    • One site under negotiation to complete restoration this summer.

FRPP

  • 2006 allocation is $1,869,726.00.
  • 8 high quality properties were funded
  • $26 million in applications for 2006 on 27 properties.
  • To date over $6.9 million in FRPP funds committed to county FP Boards and Land Trusts (3); on 6,300 acres of land and approximately 5,000 acres of that are prime, statewide or locally important soils.
Resources

Certified Conservation Planner Certification- Rick Heaslip, Barbara McWhorter, Casey D. Shrader, and Isaac Wolford have provided conservation planning training to our experienced planners to insure continuation of high quality planning. Each participant is required to submit one plan for review.

Water Resources

Lost River Site 16 (Hardy County)

  • Work is progressing well on the Supplemental Plan-EIS.
  • Currently working through NEPA process; anticipate final report by Fall 2006.
  • Schedule:
    • sign Project Agreement January 2007
    • design completed in Spring 2007
    • initiate construction Summer 2007
    • complete construction in 2010

Dunloup Creek (Fayette County)

  • Planning work progressing; awaiting comments on NRCS internal review.
  • Will schedule public workshop in Summer/Fall 2007.
  • Continue to regularly meet with DCWA and give public updates.
  • High interest in voluntary buyout option.

Rehabilitation Program

  • Completed 6 of 9 Rehabilitation Assessments.
  • Funding is very competitive; requested FY07 monies to initiate Rehab Plan.

Elkwater Fork Water Supply Dam (Randolph County)

  • Construction began in May.
  • Contractor making good progress with foundation excavation as the major component of work.
  • Schedule is to get foundation and associated work completed this year with the RCC dam construction to begin in March of 2007.
  • The major portion of the work should be completed by December 2007.

North Fork Hughes River Recreation (Ritchie County)

  • Currently advertising for bids for two contracts; sewage treatment plant and camping area.
  • Bids were due 20 Jul 06.
  • Construction should begin in August.

Upper Deckers Creek AMD (Preston and Monongalia Counties)

  • Currently advertising for bids for two sites.
  • Bids are due 22 Aug 06.
  • Reclamation should begin in early October.
  • Consultant is working on first phase of the Richard Mine discharge study through a contract with the Monongahela Conservation District.

Little Whitestick Channel Improvements, Raleigh County

  • Design complete for Phase 3.
  • Anticipate bid advertisement early July; contract award by 30 Sep 06.
  • Work should begin in October.
  • This the final phase of the Little Whitestick Channel.
Soil Survey Update
  • The soil survey staff continues to develop digital data for the Web Soil Survey.
    • Lincoln County, WV was recently posted to the Web Soil Survey.
    • The goal is to have the entire state on the web by 2007.
  • The staff continues to develop the database to support the Web Soil Survey.
    • By July 15th, they had all 55 counties in the state populated with data that generates soil descriptions online.
    • This is the next step toward the “paperless” soil survey report (online).
  • Four NRCS staff presented four papers at The World Congress of Soil Science in Philadelphia in July.
  • The soil staff completed 132,000 acres of update mapping in West Virginia during the third quarter ending June 30th.
  • Soil Survey continues to refine soil interpretations for animal mortality and drought.
Chesapeake Bay

Three NRCS Conservation Innovation Grants were funded.

  • Gasification of Poultry Litter to Produce Bio-Energy for Heat is a collaboration led by Coaltec Energy USA Inc. and Frye Poultry in Hardy County.
    • WVU will monitor the bio-energy data, develop and implement a transfer plan, and develop an economic evaluation of the technology.
  • Development and Implementation of a Water Quality Bank and Trade Program for the Potomac River Watershed, WV.
    • The project will introduce a pollutant reduction trading program in West Virginia communities in the Potomac Valley. Credits will be earned for reducing polluted discharges. The credits can be traded between farmers and industrial facilities or public service districts.
    • The pollution credit trades are expected to create a net improvement in the Potomac River watershed’s water quality and benefit local economies.
  • Utilization and Management of Invasive Plants in Pastures Using Biocontrol Agents is a collaboration that is testing farmers’ use of goats and sheep—biocontrol agents—to manage aggressive weeds.
    • The strategy is expected to reduce dependence on pesticides and fossil fuel and convert weed biomass to marketable produce.

The grants are dollar-for-dollar matches, bringing the projects’ total value to more than $2.3 million.

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