Federal Register, Volume 74, Number 10, January 15, 2009, Pages 2293-2756 Page: 2,332
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Federal Register/Vol. 74, No. 10/Thursday, January 15, 2009/Rules and Regulations
1467.3 of this part, and the size of the
parcel offered for enrollment is a
minimum of 20 contiguous acres. Such
land meets the requirement of
likelihood of successful restoration only
if the soils are hydric and the depth of
water is 6.5 feet or less at the time of
enrollment.
(6) If land offered for enrollment is
determined eligible under paragraph
(e)(3) and (e)(5) of this section, then
NRCS may also enroll land adjacent or
contiguous to such eligible land together
with the eligible land, if such land
maximizes wildlife benefits and:
(i) Is farmed wetland and adjoining
lands enrolled in CRP, with the highest
wetland functions and values, and is
likely to return to production after it
leaves CRP;
(ii) Is a riparian area along streams or
other waterways that links or, after
restoring the riparian area, will link
wetlands which are protected by an
easement or other device or
circumstance that achieves the same
objectives as an easement; or
(iii) Land adjacent to the eligible land
that would contribute significantly to
wetland functions and values, such as
buffer areas, wetland creations, non-
cropped natural wetlands, and restored
wetlands, but not more than the State
Conservationist, in consultation with
the State Technical Committee,
determines is necessary for such
contribution.
(7) To be enrolled in the program,
eligible land must be configured in a
size and with boundaries that allow for
the efficient management of the area for
program purposes and otherwise
promote and enhance program
objectives, as determined by NRCS.
(f) Enrollment of CRP lands. Land
subject to an existing CRP contract may
be enrolled in the WRP only if the land
and landowner meet the requirements of
this part, and the enrollment is
requested by the landowner and agreed
to by NRCS. To enroll in WRP, the CRP
contract for the property must be
terminated or otherwise modified
subject to such terms and conditions as
are mutually agreed upon by FSA and
the landowner.
(g) Ineligible land. The following land
is not eligible for enrollment in the
WRP:
(1) Converted wetlands if the
conversion was commenced after
December 23, 1985;
(2) Land that contains timber stands
established under a CRP contract or
pastureland established to trees under a
CRP contract;
(3) Lands owned by an agency of the
United States, other than held in trust(4) Lands owned in fee title by a State,
including an agency or a subdivision of
a State, or a unit of local government;
(5) Land subject to an easement or
deed restriction which, as determined
by NRCS, provides similar restoration
and protection of wetland functions and
values as would be provided by
enrollment in WRP; and
(6) Lands where implementation of
restoration practices would be
undermined due to on-site or off-site
conditions, such as risk of hazardous
substances either on-site or off-site,
proposed or existing rights of way,
either on-site or off-site, for
infrastructure development, or adjacent
land uses, such as airports, that would
either impede complete restoration or
prevent wetland functions and values
from being fully restored.
1467.5 Application procedures.
(a) Application for participation. To
apply for enrollment, a landowner must
submit an Application for Participation
in the WRP.
(b) Preliminary agency actions. By
filing an Application for Participation,
the landowner consents to an NRCS
representative entering upon the land
for purposes of assessing the wetland
functions and values, and for other
activities, such as the development of
the preliminary WRPO, that are
necessary or desirable for NRCS to
evaluate applications. The landowner is
entitled to accompany an NRCS
representative on any site visits.
(c) Voluntary reduction in
compensation. In order to enhance the
probability of enrollment in WRP, a
landowner may voluntarily offer to
accept a lesser payment than is being
offered by NRCS.
1467.6 Establishing priority for
enrollment of properties in WRP.
(a) When evaluating easement, 30-
year contract, or restoration cost-share
agreement offers from landowners, the
NRCS, with advice from the State
Technical Committee, may consider:
(1) The conservation benefits of
obtaining an easement, or other interest
in the land;
(2) The cost effectiveness of each
easement or other interest in eligible
land, so as to maximize the
environmental benefits per dollar
expended;
(3) Whether the landowner or another
person is offering to contribute
financially to the cost of the easement
or other interest in the land to leverage
Federal funds;
(4) The extent to which the purposes
of the easement program would be(5) The productivity of the land; and
(6) The on-farm and off-farm
environmental threats if the land is used
for the production of agricultural
commodities.
(b) To the extent practicable, taking
into consideration costs and future
agricultural and food needs, NRCS shall
give priority to:
(1) Obtaining permanent easements
over shorter term easements; and
(2) Acquiring easements based on the
value of the easement for protecting and
enhancing habitat for migratory birds
and other wildlife, in consultation with
FWS.
(c) NRCS, in consultation with the
State Technical Committee, may place
higher priority on certain geographic
regions of the State where restoration of
wetlands may better achieve State and
regional goals and objectives.
(d) Notwithstanding any limitation of
this part, the State Conservationist may,
at any time, exclude enrollment of
otherwise eligible lands if the
participation of the adjacent landowners
is essential to the successful restoration
of the wetlands and those adjacent
landowners are unwilling or ineligible
to participate. The State Conservationist
may coordinate with other Federal,
State, and nonprofit organizations to
encourage the restoration of wetlands on
adjacent ineligible lands, especially in
priority geographic areas.
(e)(1) The Chief will conduct an
assessment during fiscal year 2008 and
each subsequent fiscal year for the
purpose of determining the interest and
allocations for the Prairie Pothole
Region to enroll land determined
eligible under 1467.4(d)(5) of this part
into 30-year easements. Annually, the
Chief will provide specific instructions
for the assessment in writing to the
applicable State Conservationists.
(2) The Chief will make an adjustment
to the allocation for an applicable State
for a fiscal year, based on the results of
the assessment conducted under
paragraph (e)(1) of this section for the
State during the previous fiscal year.
1467.7 Enrollment process.
(a) Tentative Selection. Based on the
priority ranking, NRCS will notify an
affected landowner of tentative
acceptance into the program.
(b) Effect of notice of tentative
selection. The notice of tentative
acceptance into the program does not
bind NRCS or the United States to enroll
the proposed project in WRP, nor does
it bind the landowner to continue with
enrollment in the program. The notice
informs the landowner of NRCS' intentachieved on the land;
2332
for Indian Tribes;
to continue the enrollment process on
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United States. Office of the Federal Register. Federal Register, Volume 74, Number 10, January 15, 2009, Pages 2293-2756, periodical, January 15, 2009; Washington D.C.. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc132872/m1/49/: accessed April 24, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.