According to the U.S. Drought Monitor posted Thursday, Sept .5, there are 49 counties in Iowa that have all, or a portion, of the county in D2 Drought-Severe Status.
Clarke County has qualified for Emergency grazing of Conservation Reserve Program (CRP).
Emergency grazing shall end no later than Sept. 30. Leave at least 25 percent of each field or contiguous field ungrazed for wildlife, or graze no more than 75 percent of the stocking rate determined by NRCS. The payment reduction for 2013 is 10 percent of the annual rental rate per acre.
Acreage eligible for emergency grazing includes practices CP1, CP2, CP4B, CP4D and CP38. The following practices of the named SAFE projects may be grazed: Grand River Grassland, Gaining Ground for Wildlife and Iowa Pheasant Recovery.
Producers wanting to emergency graze shall follow the normal requirements to request and receive COC/CED approval. Contact Clarke-Decatur FSA Office for any questions in regard to the emergency grazing of Conservation Reserve Program acres.