Spring 2012 - Minority Landowner

Profits from a Perpetual Easement
By Dr. Jerome Faulkner
Resource Conservationist Planner
USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service
Kentucky
Alfred Couch
Wetlands Reserve Program
Following closing for the purchase of a perpetual Wetlands
Reserve Program (WRP) easement, Alfred Couch deposited
a nice check in the bank. Years ago he purchased his
small farm in Hopkins County, Kentucky after searching for
houses within commuting distance of his work in Evansville, Indiana
at the Alcoa aluminum smelting and fabricating facility. He
needed a place that was close to work but affordable. The farm
that he found was perfect. The land included with the house was
an extra bonus for the Couches and he always considered it as a
way to make an extra dollar towards the home purchase.
The 20 acre cattle farm was in disrepair. The grass was high
and was only mowed once a year. The pond was overgrown
and fences were down. He had the fields mowed and removed
all the random pieces of fence throughout the fields. To keep
money coming, he leased out the land for hay production. The
soil was not productive and needed fertilizer and lime to maintain
hay production. Much of his land was too wet for good hay
production.
Couch continued looking for innovative ways for the land to
produce income. He participates in the Kentucky Department of
Fish and Wildlife Resources (KDFWR) Dove Field Lease Program.
He plants the fields to manage specifically for dove hunting
and then leases them to KDFWR for public hunting. This
program encouraged Couch to become interested in other opportunities
to increase revenues from his property.
The Cooperative Extension Service referred him to USDA to
obtain a farm number. After registering his farm with the Farm
Service Agency, he started to receive newsletters related to different
programs that were available. In one of those mailings he heard
about the Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP) and its benefits for
wildlife. Couch had heard of other easement programs that were
related to wetland restoration and knew this was a good way to
make money while enhancing the wildlife benefits. He went to
the local Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) office
and learned more about WRP and signed up for the program.
Couch applied for WRP and was visited by a NRCS biologist
who examined the property and gave it a ranking score for the
program. NRCS ranks eligible projects according to environmental
benefits for future habitat diversity, benefits to animals, restoration
of hydrology, the ability of the project to reduce habitat
fragmentation, size of the offering, and improved water quality.
Then a long wait occurred because of the high demand for the
program. WRP has a continuous application process so once you
apply you do not have to reapply every year for the program.
Funding was available in 2010 and Couch signed an Agreement
to Purchase a Conservation Easement. The land was surveyed
and after all the title work and environmental due diligence
was completed, the closing date was set in October 2011.
Now that the easement closed, wetland restoration is underway.
Restoration includes building a shallow water area and planting
native bottomland hardwood trees. Couch wants to construct
his shallow water area and plant the trees on the property himself.
In a permanent easement option for WRP the restoration is
100% funded by NRCS. Therefore, he sees the restoration as an
opportunity to be compensated for doing work on his own land.
This is a win-win situation for NRCS and the landowner because
both parties are intimately connected to the success of the restoration
work.
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