The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Climate Office is seeking input on its Climate-Smart Agriculture and Forestry Mitigation Activities List. Each year, the Climate Office reviews NRCS conservation activities (practices and enhancements) to recommend additions, removals, or to provide further detail for listed activities. The list guides eligibility for funds from the Inflation Reduction Act. While NRCS collects feedback throughout the …
Skills Needed in the Agricultural Workforce
What skills are currently needed in the agricultural workforce? That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. U.S. employers report challenges in finding suitable job candidates with work-ready skills to fill open roles in the agri-food industry. AgCareers.com surveyed those employers to gain deeper insights into the skills they seek and identify the most significant skill gaps in the workforce. …
FDACS Announces Protection of Over 8,000 Acres of Florida Agricultural Land
(FDACS/TALLAHASSEE, FL/March 26, 2024) — Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Wilton Simpson announced the protection of over 8,000 acres of Florida agricultural land through the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services’ Rural and Family Lands Protection Program. With today’s approval by the Governor and Cabinet, approximately 8,349 acres of working agricultural lands will be preserved through cost-effective rural land protection easements …
Florida Agriculture Commissioner Celebrates Preservation of Over 100,000 Acres of Agricultural Lands
(FDACS/TALLAHASSEE, FL/March 18, 2024) — Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Wilton Simpson proudly announced the Rural and Family Lands Protection Program has now preserved over 100,000 acres of vital agricultural lands in Florida from development with the formal completion of rural land easements on Adams Ranch and Buck Island Ranch, previously approved by the Governor and Cabinet. “Reaching the milestone of preserving …
Shielding Agriculture from Cyber Attacks
Shielding agriculture from cyber attacks. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. Two senators introduced legislation intended to boost the agricultural industry’s resilience against cyber attacks. The bipartisan measure from Tom Cotton (R-AR) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) is backed by a number of agricultural groups. If passed, the bill would shield America’s supply chain from technological attacks. “America’s adversaries …
Act Now Streamlines Review of Producer Applications in Alabama
The state office of the Natural Resources Conservation Service in Alabama (NRCS-AL) has announced they will use the new “Act Now” policy to deliver conservation practices faster. This program allows NRCS to quickly approve and obligate a ranked application in a designated ranking pool when an eligible application meets or exceeds a State-determined minimum threshold, ranking score. This means under the Act …
Trends in Agricultural Land Ownership
The latest trends in agriculture land ownership. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. The landscape of land ownership has evolved over the past 25 years as a generational transfer of ownership takes place. A Farmers National Company report says a strong ag economy has driven the market higher for several years. Most landowners have seen steady increases in …
Secretaries of Education, Agriculture Call on Governors to Equitably Fund Land-Grant HBCUs
(USDA/WASHINGTON, September 18, 2023)Â — U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Thomas Vilsack today sent letters to 16 governors emphasizing the over $12 billion disparity in funding between land-grant Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and their non-HBCU land-grant peers in their states. The 16 governors receiving the letter are: There are HBCU land-grant institutions in …
USDA Unveils Efforts to Streamline Agricultural Conservation Easement Program
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is streamlining its Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP) to ultimately better help agricultural producers and private landowners conserve wetlands, productive farmlands and at-risk grasslands. USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is rolling out several improvements to the program, which has more than 5 million acres of land enrolled, in response to feedback from producers, landowners and conservation partners. …
Critics View FL Legislation as Potentially Harmful to Wetlands and Everglades Restoration Efforts
(NSF/TALLAHASSEE, FL/June 15, 2023) — Senate leaders weren’t going to let a year-old outburst aimed at state lawmakers go unaddressed. VoteWater, a Treasure Coast group focused on political issues related to restoring the Everglades, is raising cane over the Senate this spring not confirming the reappointment of South Florida Water Management District Governing Board member Jacqui Thurlow-Lippisch. “Few people in …