court

DeSantis, Cabinet to Take Up Land Deals

Dan Conservation, Environment, Florida, Industry News Release

(NSF) — Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Florida Cabinet next week will consider paying $4.3 million to conserve 1,786 acres in Santa Rosa County and $1 million for about 729 acres in Jefferson County. Both projects are on acquisition lists for the Florida Forever program. The Santa Rosa County land, owned by Kingfisher Timber, LLC, is used for hunting and …

budget

Agriculture groups Ready to Work with Biden Administration

Dan Environment, General

AFBF Congratulates President Biden on Inauguration (AFBF) — American Farm Bureau (AFBF) President Zippy Duvall commented on the inauguration of President Joe Biden, who was sworn-in as the 46th President of the United States. “The American Farm Bureau Federation congratulates President Joe Biden as he begins his term as 46th president of the United States. We also congratulate Vice President Kamala Harris …

investing

USDA Investing to Protect Communities in Florida

Dan Conservation, Environment, Florida, Forestry, Irrigation, Soil, USDA-NRCS, Water

The U.S Department of Agriculture (USDA) will be investing more than $46 million this year through the Joint Chiefs’ Landscape Restoration Partnership for projects that mitigate wildfire risk, improve water quality, and restore healthy forest ecosystems on public and private lands. Through the projects, USDA’s Forest Service and Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) are working hand-in-hand with agricultural producers, forest landowners, and …

mitigating needle blight

USDA Offers New Forest Management Incentive for CRP

Dan Conservation, Environment, Forestry, Industry News Release, USDA-FSA

(USDA/FSA) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is making available $12 million for use in making payments to forest landowners with land enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) in exchange for their implementing healthy forest management practices. Existing CRP participants can now sign up for the Forest Management Incentive (FMI), which provides financial incentives to landowners with land …

greenhouse gas

UF Scientist Finds Way to Reduce Greenhouse Gas in Soil

Dan Environment, Florida, Industry News Release, Research, Soil, Soil

(UF/IFAS) — When soil gets saturated with water, the ground can produce nitrous oxide, a greenhouse gas that depletes the ozone, that the layer protects plants and animals on Earth from harmful ultraviolet light. For context, nitrous oxide is 310 times more powerful than carbon dioxide, another greenhouse gas that’s harmful to the ozone layer. That’s why it’s important to …

environmenmtal

Environmental Groups Challenge Permitting Change

Dan Conservation, Environment, Florida, Industry News Release

(NSF) — A coalition of environmental groups Thursday filed a federal lawsuit challenging a potentially far-reaching move by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to shift permitting authority to Florida for projects that affect wetlands. The coalition, represented by attorneys from the Earthjustice legal group, contends that the EPA and other federal agencies did not comply with a series of laws …

rcpp

New Rule Improves Partner Flexibility in RCPP

Dan Conservation, Industry News Release, USDA-NRCS

(USDA/NRCS) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released the final rule for its Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). The rule updates USDA’s partner-driven program as directed by the 2018 Farm Bill and integrates feedback from agricultural producers and others. “The Regional Conservation Partnership Program is a powerful program that enables us to co-invest with partners on win-win solutions that benefit agriculture and natural …

Conservation

Florida NRCS Announces 2021 Agricultural Conservation Easement Signup

Dan Conservation, Environment, Florida, USDA-NRCS

USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Florida has announced that applications to fund agricultural easements in Florida are being accepted until Feb. 12. NRCS will provide financial and technical assistance to conserve working lands and wetlands through two programs: Agricultural Land Easements and Wetland Reserve Easements. Agricultural landowners and Indian tribes can apply for a Wetland Reserve Easement to restore wetlands, protect wildlife habitat and …

conservation

Development of the Agricultural Conservation Planning Framework

Dan Conservation, Environment, Industry News Release, USDA-NRCS

NRCS Conservation Outcomes Webinar Series (USDA/NRCS) —This monthly webinar series highlights recent outcomes, emerging opportunities, and conservation tools and data developed to assist with conservation planning and impact and efficiency assessment. The series illustrates the scope of Farm Bill conservation efforts on privately owned croplands, forests, and rangelands; documents the conservation achievements and outcomes of those efforts; and shows the …

grassland

Florida’s First Conservation Easement Protecting Grassland of Special Environmental Significance Recorded in Columbia County

Dan Conservation, Environment, Florida, Industry News Release, USDA-NRCS

With funding support from the Natural Resources Conservation Service, and local and state partners, a 518-acre sandhill grassland ecosystem with over 243 native plant species has been permanently protected by Alachua Conservation Trust and North Florida Land Trust. Alachua Conservation Trust (ACT), North Florida Land Trust (NFLT) and partners are pleased to announce the finalization of one of the first …