Oil, gas leasing issues to be discussed at ag women's conference

Arkansas

A question and answer session on oil and gas leasing legal issues has been added to the agenda for the Arkansas Women in Agriculture conference set March 6 and 7 at the Hot Springs Convention Center.

"There is a rash of leasing going on in Arkansas, mostly in the central and eastern part of the state," said Dr. Janie Hipp, assistant professor and natural resources regulatory policy specialist with the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service.

"Extension informational meetings on this topic have attracted large numbers of people," she said. "The conference planners have decided this was important enough to expand a legal session to include oil and gas issues."

Dr. Jennie Popp, a university agricultural economist, said there is growing interest in oil and gas leasing, and "many Arkansas women landowners or agricultural producers may have questions concerning the leasing of their mineral rights."

The Arkansas Women in Agriculture conference will feature talks by Dick Bell, Arkansas' new Secretary of Agriculture, and Jolene Brown of Iowa. She'll also lead a panel discussion on intergenerational concerns.

The conference also features sessions to help participants with many agricultural concerns, including taxes, water and legal issues in agriculture, family financial planning, alternative marketing strategies for farmers, financial assistance available in agriculture, understanding drug use and cooking with Arkansas agricultural products.

For more information, including a registration form, visit the conference website at www.arwomeninag.com or call Hipp at 479-575-6935 or jhipp@uark.edu. You can also contact Jennie Popp or Darci Hewett at 479-575-2279 or arwia@uark.edu.

The Cooperative Extension Service is part of the U of A Division of Agriculture.

Date: 2/21/06