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Family Farming Continues With Conservation Assistance

Before his untimely death in 2007, Mark Simpson visited the Highland County NRCS office to get help with his grazing operation. The single pasture used to graze his 50 red limousine beef cattle had become depleted. Mark wanted to utilize more of his 300 acres as pasture, but lacked fencing. The Appalachia Special EQIP project was created for people like Mark and his wife, Kim, who have limited financial resources. Qualifying individuals are offered up to a 90 percent incentive for improvements to natural resources on their property. Today the 300-acre farm is under major construction to make various improvements for expanded grazing.

During the summer of 2007, Kim Simpson, now a widow and the sole owner/operator of the farm, worked with District Conservationist Jay McElroy to begin planning a rotational grazing system. With only one pasture in use, overgrazing was an issue, resulting in soil erosion and water runoff. With additional fencing, there will be a total of four pastures, increasing forage quality and quantity. Liming, fertilizing, and reseeding the pasture is also part of her contract. This fertilizing and reseeding should improve forage growth and quality of the pastures. The fencing prevents access to a creek and pond that runs through the property. This will improve water quality as well as assist in curbing stream bank erosion. Water springs are expected to be installed in the pastures that do not allow access to a water supply.

An additional component of the conservation plan includes the installation of a heavy use pad. This pad will provide firm ground for the cattle during the winter when the ground is soft, minimizing erosion and improving conditions for the cattle. It can also serve as a holding area to nurse injured or ill livestock back to health. The pad will be installed closer to the residence, which will create a more convenient way of caring for the cattle during the winter months.

As a widow with a young son, Simpson does nearly everything on her own, including bailing the hay used to feed the cattle. “If it weren’t for EQIP, I would have had to sell it all,” Simpson comments of the hope brought by enrolling in the program. “These improvements to the farm are much needed and with the help of government agencies such as the Soil and Water Conservation District and the Natural Resources Conservation Service, these improvements were made possible.”

According to Kim Browning, Area Resource Conservationist, the Appalachia Special EQIP Project funded over $314,000 worth of requests to 13 limited resource farmers and beginning farmers in 2007 and is expanding to all 29 Appalachian counties in Ohio in 2008.

Media Contact: Christina Coulon, Ohio

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