161A.73 - VOLUNTARY ESTABLISHMENT OF SOIL AND WATER CONSERVATION PRACTICES.

        161A.73  VOLUNTARY ESTABLISHMENT OF SOIL AND WATER
      CONSERVATION PRACTICES.
         1.  The division shall establish voluntary financial incentive
      programs which shall provide for the following:
         a.  The allocation of cost-share moneys as financial
      incentives provided for the purpose of establishing permanent soil
      and water conservation practices, including but not limited to
      terraces, diversions, grade stabilization structures, grassed
      waterways, and critical area planting.  The financial incentives
      shall not exceed fifty percent of the estimated cost of establishing
      the practices, or fifty percent of the actual cost, whichever is
      less.
         b.  The allocation of moneys as financial incentives provided
      for the purpose of establishing management practices to control soil
      erosion on land that is row cropped, including but not limited to
      no-till planting, ridge-till planting, contouring, and contour
      strip-cropping.  The division shall by rule establish limits on the
      amount of incentives which shall be authorized for payment to
      landowners upon establishment of the practice.
         c.  The allocation of cost-share moneys as financial
      incentives provided to establish practices to protect watersheds
      above publicly owned lakes of the state from soil erosion and
      sediment.  The financial incentives shall be awarded to watersheds
      which are of the highest importance based on soil loss as established
      by the natural resource commission pursuant to section 456A.33A.  The
      financial incentives shall not exceed seventy-five percent of the
      estimated cost of establishing the practices as determined by the
      commissioners or seventy-five percent of the actual cost of
      establishing the practices, whichever is less.
         d.  The allocation of cost-share moneys as financial
      incentives to establish permanent grass and buffer zones, including
      an erosion control structure or an erosion control practice to
      mitigate the effects of concentrated runoff on surface water quality.
      The financial incentives shall not exceed one hundred percent of the
      estimated cost of establishing a zone, as determined by the
      commissioners, or one hundred percent of the actual cost of
      establishing the zone, whichever is less.
         e.  The allocation of cost-share moneys as financial
      incentives for the same purposes that are supported from the soil and
      water enhancement account of the resources enhancement and protection
      fund as provided in section 455A.19, or by the water protection
      practices account of the water protection fund established pursuant
      to section 161C.4.  The financial incentives shall not exceed fifty
      percent of the estimated cost of establishing the practices, or fifty
      percent of the actual cost, whichever is less.
         2.  The commissioners of a district may establish voluntary
      financial incentive programs which shall provide for the following:
         a.  The allocation of cost-share moneys as financial
      incentives under a special agreement with owners of land in the
      district who promise to adopt a watershed conservation plan as
      provided by rules which shall be adopted by the division.  The
      watershed conservation plan shall be in conjunction with the owners'
      respective farm unit soil conservation plans.  The funding agreement
      must provide for the funding of a project which includes five or more
      contiguous farm units which have at least five hundred acres of
      agricultural land and which constitutes at least seventy-five percent
      of the agricultural land located within a watershed or subwatershed.
      The financial incentives shall not exceed sixty percent of the
      estimated cost of the project as determined by the commissioners or
      sixty percent of the actual cost, whichever is less.
         b.  The allocation of cost-share moneys as financial
      incentives to encourage summer construction of permanent soil and
      water conservation practices.  The practices must be constructed on
      or after June 1 but not later than September 15.  The commissioners
      may also provide for the payment of moneys on a prorated basis to
      compensate persons for the production loss on an area disturbed by
      construction, according to rules which shall be adopted by the
      division.  The commissioners shall not allocate cost-share moneys to
      support summer construction during a fiscal year in which
      applications for cost-share moneys required to establish permanent
      soil and water conservation practices, other than established by
      summer construction, equal the total amount available to support the
      nonsummer construction practices.  The financial incentives shall not
      exceed sixty percent of the estimated cost of establishing the
      practice as determined by the commissioners, or sixty percent of the
      actual cost of establishing the practice, whichever is less.
         3. a.  The division may reimburse private landowners for a
      portion of the cost of fencing materials and installation for
      permanent fence used to protect forest land from domestic livestock
      grazing, if the division determines that the grazing has caused
      excessive soil loss.  For purposes of this subsection, forests shall
      be considered as agricultural land eligible for cost-share moneys.
      The total expenditure of reimbursement moneys shall not exceed fifty
      percent of the total landowner expenditures.  Expenditures for
      boundary and road fence construction and for repair and replacement
      of existing fences are not eligible for reimbursement unless the
      complete fence is replaced.
         b.  A landowner shall sign an agreement with the division as a
      condition for receiving cost-share moneys.  The agreement shall
      provide that the landowner shall maintain the fence for a minimum of
      ten years and shall follow written professional forester
      recommendations relating to land protected by fencing.  The
      recommendations must be approved by the state forester or the
      forester's designee.
         c.  A landowner who violates the maintenance agreement shall
      maintain, repair, or reconstruct the damaged fence, or shall pay the
      division an amount equal to the amount of cost- share moneys
      reimbursed.
         d.  The division shall adopt rules to administer this
      subsection, including rules relating to procedures required to
      receive reimbursement, and eligibility requirements such as the
      minimum forest acreage required, and the maximum reimbursement amount
      allowed.  
         Section History: Recent Form
         92 Acts, ch 1184, § 8; 92 Acts, ch 1239, § 51, 52; 96 Acts, ch
      1083, § 5; 98 Acts, ch 1040, §1
         Referred to in § 161A.75