Full CREP funding pleases local river supporters

By FRITZ BUSCH

Journal Staff Writer

ST. PAUL -- District Senator Dennis R. Frederickson (R-New Ulm) is still trying to catch up on his sleep after the overtime legislative session but he is pleased that the state bonding bill paved the way for full implementation of the Minnesota River Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP).

During a session that included lots of bickering and indecision, the CREP vote was very one-sided. The vote was 115-7 in the House and 57-0 in the Senate. House members cheered as the voting board lit up all green at 3 a.m. last Saturday.

The bonding bill included an appropriation of $51.4 million earmarked for CREP, the amount needed for the state to fully match the $163 million in available federal money.

The target goal of 100,000 acres set by former Minnesota Governor Arne H. Carlson and the USDA in 1998 can now be reached and the critical match will be secured, according to the Minnesota Board of Water & Soil Resources.

CREP is a state and federal program that pays landowners in the Minnesota River basin to take marginal cropland cropland out of production as a way to improve water quality and wildlife habitat.

Redwood and Renville counties lead the area in enrolled CREP acreage at 4,292.9 and 3,982.8 respectively as of May 31, 2001. Another 1,811.6 Renville County acres were in the application process as of June 18, 2001. Redwood County had 615.3 acres in process.

"I find those numbers interesting because Renville and Redwood County are the top two corn and soybean-producing counties in the state," Frederickson said. "Even in counties with heavy agricultural production, there is broad support for this."

Statewide, there are 42,237.6 acres enrolled in CREP and another 23,893.6 acres in process.

Frederickson said the main purpose of the program is to support river water quality and reduce silt, nutrient and contamination load.

Scott Sparlin of New Ulm and the Coalition for a Clean Minnesota River (CCMR) attributed to large number of acres in Renville and Redwood Counties to the hard work of Tom Callahar.

Brown County had 1,781.7 enrolled acres as of May 31 and another 895.9 in process.

"It's been a long run," Sparlin said. "It all started at the federal level a long time ago. We're seeing real solid support for the program up and down the river. It's arguably one of the largest watershed initiatives of all time. The long and short of it is that for the most part, people understand that this is something that works."

Sparlin said a couple counties are lagging behind the others including Sibley County which had just 37.2 acres enrolled but 337 in process.

Frederickson said the federal government may some day look at the "dead zone" in the Gulf of Mexico south of the Mississippi River inlet and establish mandatory land practices for farmers, in order to avoid pollution.

He called CREP an up front program that uses a carrot instead of a stick to reduce pollution, improve water quality and wildlife habitat.

"It's a win-win situation all the way around," Frederickson said. "The Minnesota River Watershed is one of the first in the country to be in this program. It's being watched nationally -- how we utilize it and how it improves the river."

Frederickson said if the program works well, perhaps the federal government will partner with Minnesota for another CREP for the Minnesota River, the Red River and/or with other states and watersheds.

For more information, visit www.bwsr.state.mn.us