08/02/06 Idaho conservation

Conservation in Idaho. NRCS certainly believes that to be true thanks to farmers, ranchers and private landowners taking advantage of several federal programs. SIMS "We've averaged right around 300 to 350 contracts a year and that equates to anywhere between 10 and 12 million dollars for cost share." That's Idaho NRCS State Conservationist Rich Sims. His agency has administered 70 million dollars in Idaho conservation money since the 2002 Farm Bill was enacted. Growers like Eric Odberg who farms 22 hundred acres near Genesee and ranchers like Steve Herbst of Salmon are making a difference with help from NRCS programs. ODBERG "What the EQIP cost share program allowed me to do is reduce the risk of starting direct seeding on our farm. My whole goal is to be able to leave the resource here as good as when I started farming it and hopefully better." HERBST "Well this ranch runs 300 mother cows and we feed out 100 bulls. I'm pretty excited about the CSP program as it does create a little incentive for us to want to stay and work the land rather than go to town and work there." Voice of Idaho Agriculture Bill Scott