PERSPECTIVE OKLAHOMA FARM BUREAU
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July 27, 2012
OFB Board Gets Firsthand Look at Conservation Efforts Farm Bureau state board members traveled to western Canadian County July 18 to learn more about voluntary conservation efforts from producer and Farm Bureau member Jeff Brower, who converted his cropland from clean-till to no-till as part of the North Canadian River Watershed 319 Implementation Project. NCRW 319 is a partnership between local landowners, conservation districts in the project area, the Oklahoma Conservation Commission, the Natural Resource Conservation Service and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. It was initiated to address water quality issues present in the watershed, which is comprised of 760 square miles stretching from Canton Lake in Blaine and Dewey Counties down to Lake Overholser on the west side of Oklahoma City.
Brower has been using a no-till approach for the past five years, and although there was a learning curve involved in the transition, he said he has found success using no-till techniques. OFB District 4 Director Jimmy Wayne Kinder also practices the no-tillage farming method on his farm in southwest Oklahoma and said it was interesting to see how producers in other areas of the state are taking advantage of the win-win situation no-till creates. “The no-till method provides a superior economic return for the producer, as well as improves environmental issues,” Kinder said. “Normally when a producer talks about conservation efforts, he usually has some out-of-pocket expense, but in no-till, there’s actually an increase in income.” Greg Scott, state soil scientist with the Natural Resources Conservation Service, (left) uses a rain simulator and several different soil samples to demonstrate the effects plant cover and soil structure can have on runoff, erosion and water filtration.
Canadian County Farm Bureau member Jeff Brower (left) explains his family’s participation in the Oklahoma Conservation Commission’s 319 Project. The program aims to improve water quality in the North Canadian River Watershed through best management practices like the no-till farming method Brower initiated in the fields he and his father-in-law farm in western Canadian County. In addition to the positive environmental effects, Brower said he has seen higher yields and lower expenses over the past five years.
In This Issue • Board tours conservation area • August area meeting schedule • White receives award • Women’s Summer Conference • Noble County Ice Cream Social • Big 3 Field Days
August Area Meetings Scheduled Farm Bureau’s August Area Meetings give members the opportunity to help set OFB public policy for the next year through a grassroots process. District 1 – Thursday, Aug. 2 12 p.m. – Beaver Co. office District 2 – Monday, Aug. 13 11:30 a.m. – Kiowa Co. office District 3 – Tuesday, Aug. 14 6 p.m. – Canadian Co. office District 4 – Thursday, Aug. 23 11:30 a.m. – Marshall Co. office 6 p.m. – Stephens Co. office District 5 – Tuesday, Aug. 14 6 p.m. – Pittsburgh Co. office District 6 – Thursday, Aug. 2 10 a.m. – Mayes Co. office 6 p.m. – Muskogee Co. office District 7 – Thursday, Aug. 2 7 p.m. – Garfield County Fairgrounds (east side of the Hoover Building) District 8 – Tuesday, Aug. 14 11:30 a.m. – Seminole Co. office District 9 – Thursday, Aug. 16 6 p.m. – Tulsa Co. office