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Monitoring grazing land, riparian areas importantNebraska There are several methods to monitoring grazing lands to keep tabs on the plant community, to maintain vegetation for regrowth, keep the landscape from deteriorating-especially along water areas, and help prepare plant supplies for drought periods according to a Natural Resources Conservation Service official. "These methods are useful to people with range or pasture grasses. Grass is really the crop being raised and not the livestock that graze it. Therefore people must monitor the vegetation," said Steve Chick, State Conservationist for the NRCS. "Farmers and ranchers in the Middle Republican watershed in south-central Nebraska have an opportunity to improve their grazing management by monitoring the plant community, plus receive an incentive payment for taking action," said Chick. Producers in parts of this 11 county area in Nebraska and northern Kansas can sign-up to take these actions through the Conservation Security Program. Started in 2004, the CSP offers payments to farmers and ranchers who have completed conservation practices on their land. It also offers enhancement payments as an incentive to encourage producers to make further improvements. Here are some sample changes producers can make to receive a CSP enhancement for grazing monitoring of pastures and rangeland, and management along riparian areas: --Develop a monitoring program that includes setting objectives, select monitoring techniques, selecting monitoring sites, collecting and recording data, interpreting data and refining management as needed; --Selecting from three levels of monitoring which are: 1) photo point monitoring which involves taking close-up and landscape photos at pre-selected points annually to aid observations; 2) photo point monitoring plus step point transect which involves selecting a point in the distance used in the landscape photo, taking 100 steps and every two paces recording at the tip of one boot whether cover is present or not, type of cover (vegetation, rock or litter), or bare ground. Percentage can be calculated off the findings; 3) photo point monitoring plus one or more of either the line-point intercept, species composition by plant production, gap intercept on the soil surface, soil stability test, belt transect (measuring perennial invasive plants and woody species), and vegetation structure. --Manage access to riparian areas along seasonal or perennial streams by moving livestock through a rotational system which includes water sources and away from the riparian area, construct fences, or create limited access points for livestock watering; --Limiting livestock occupation periods in riparian areas to no more than 50% of the current year's growth of vegetation while maintaining stream bank integrity; NRCS will provide instructions and forms for any of these methods selected by the producer. Producers may have to show records or photos of findings. There are other enhancements available to producers through the Conservation Security Program. More details are available at www.ne.nrcs.usda.gov/programs or from an NRCS office in the local USDA Service Center. 4/7/08 Date: 4/2/08
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