October 2003
Amendment
001 Statement of Purpose
002 Administration
003 Definitions
004 Technical Requirements
005 Application Process
006 Review of Applications
007 Buffer Strip Payments
008 Contractual Requirements Between NRD and Applicant
009 Compliance
010 Administrative Costs
011 Publications Adopted
012 Annotation
001 Statement of Purpose. The purpose of these
regulations is to aid in administering the Buffer Strip Act, Neb. Rev.
Stat. §§2-5101 to 2-5111.
002 Administration. The Buffer Strip Act and these
regulations shall be administered by the Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Plant Industry,
located in the State Office Building, Fourth Floor, 301 Centennial Mall South, Lincoln,
Nebraska. The mailing address is P.O. Box 94756, Lincoln, Nebraska 68509-4756. The
telephone number is (402) 471-2394. The Department shall make available to the public, upon
request, a map showing the location of buffer strips in each watershed.
003 Definitions. In addition to the terms listed below,
the definition of terms found in the Buffer Strip Act shall apply to such terms when found in
these regulations:
003.02 ADMINISTRATOR shall mean the Nebraska Department of
Agriculture.
003.03 CREP shall mean the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program as
established under 16 U.S.C. 3801 et. seq.
003.04 CRP shall mean the Conservation Reserve Program as established under
16 U.S.C. 3801 et. seq.
003.05 CRP SOIL RENTAL RATE shall mean the soil rental rates established
by the Farm Service Agency.
003.06 NRD shall mean the Natural Resources District which covers the area
where the buffer strip application is located.
003.07 PERENNIAL STREAM shall mean solid blue line drains on USGS
quadrangle maps.
003.08 PERMANENT BODY OF WATER shall mean any surface water body
with a permanent pool of water eight out of ten years.
003.09 PRIORITY WATERSHED shall mean an eight-digit hydrologic unit
code watershed identified as a Category 1 Watershed in the Nebraska Unified Watershed
Assessment, which by this reference is made a part of these regulations.
003.10 SEASONAL STREAM shall mean an intermittent stream that flows
only during a certain climatic season excluding gullies or sod waterways. Seasonal streams may
be based on any of the following criteria:
003.10B Three dot blue lines on USGS quadrangle maps. If the stream has been
moved, the present location is the eligible site. If the channel or flow area is no longer present
because of manipulation such as land leveling or filling, this criterion cannot be used; or,
003.10C Areas of concentrated flow with a bed and bank and with either a
scoured bottom or hydrophytic vegetation.
003.11B Intermittently Exposed - surface water is present throughout the year
except in years of extreme drought;
003.11C Semipermanently Flooded - surface water is present throughout the
growing season in most years; or,
003.11D Seasonally Flooded - surface water is present for extended periods of
not less that 21 consecutive calendar days especially early in the growing season, but is absent by
the end of the growing season in most years.
004 Technical Requirements.
004.02 Land eligible for enrollment as a buffer strip shall include all cropland
adjacent to perennial streams, seasonal streams, wetlands, or permanent bodies of water. All soil
types and classifications shall be appropriate for protection by buffer strips.
004.03 The minimum size per application for a buffer strip is one (1) acre and
the maximum width of any buffer strip shall be one hundred (100) feet unless NRCS guidelines
set forth in section 004.01 above are greater.
005 Application Process.
005.02 All applications to create a buffer strip shall be reviewed according to
the Buffer Strip Act and section 006 of these regulations.
006 Review of Applications.
006.02 All applications submitted to the NRD shall be reviewed by the NRD to
determine compliance with these regulations.
006.03 Applications approved by the NRD shall be forwarded to the Department
for review within 30 days of receipt of the completed application.
006.04 Following a review of all applications, the Department shall determine if
sufficient funds exist to make payments on all applications determined to be in compliance with
the Act and the regulations.
006.05 If sufficient funds exist to make payment for all applications determined
to be in compliance with the Act and the regulations, the Department shall approve the
applications and forward them back to the NRD within 30 days of receipt at the Department.
006.06 If sufficient funds do not exist to fund all applications determined to be
in compliance with the Act and the regulations, the Department shall prioritize the applications.
The prioritization shall be made by awarding points for that percentage of the buffer strip that
meets the following stated criteria:
006.06B A buffer strip immediately adjacent to an seasonal stream or a
permanent water body of at least five acres shall be awarded six points.
006.06C A buffer strip immediately adjacent to a wetland shall be awarded five
points.
006.06D A buffer strip immediately adjacent to a permanent water body smaller
than five acres shall be awarded three points.
006.06E A buffer strip located in a high priority Category 1 watershed shall be
awarded three points.
006.06F A buffer strip located in a medium priority Category 1 watershed shall
be awarded two points.
006.06G A buffer strip located in a low priority Category 1 watershed shall be
awarded one point.
006.06H A buffer strip for which the applicant has not received payment under
the Act during the preceding five years shall be awarded one point.
007 Buffer Strip Payments.
007.02 Irrigated Cropland.
007.02B Contractual agreements described in 25 N.A.C. 4-008, for irrigated
cropland which were entered into prior to the effective date of this regulation, may be amended
on a one-time basis to reflect the payment rate increase for irrigated cropland. Any such
amendment shall not be retroactive.
008 Contractual Requirements Between NRD and Applicant.
Following the acceptance of any application for buffer strip reimbursement, the applicant
shall enter into a contractual agreement with the local NRD. Such contract shall, at a minimum,
include:
008.02 The mailing address or financial institution necessary to make payments
to the applicant under the agreement.
008.03 Establishment requirements, grazing, haying and operation and
maintenance requirements according to the technical requirements set forth in section 004 of
these regulations.
008.04 A statement indicating an affirmative duty on the applicant to notify the
NRD if the land enrolled in the buffer strip also becomes enrolled in the CRP or any other
program.
008.05 The amount of the payment and the dates that it will be paid.
008.06 A provision indicating that throughout the term of the agreement, the
applicant shall maintain the buffer strip in accordance with the Noxious Weed Control Act, the
Buffer Strip Act and the rules and regulations adopted and promulgated under it, and the
provisions of the agreement.
008.07 A provision indicating that if the applicant fails to plant or maintain the
buffer strip or is otherwise in violation of the agreement, all future payments under the agreement
may be forfeited, the agreement may be canceled, and the applicant may be required to repay any
payments previously made.
008.08 A provision indicating that if sufficient funds are no longer available
under the program, the local NRD may, at its option, terminate the agreement and all future
payments.
008.09 The applicant's signature and a certification that the information
provided on the application and in the agreement is true and correct and that the terms and
conditions of the agreement, including the penalty for violating the terms, are understood.
009 Compliance. The Department and the local
NRDs shall both conduct inspections to insure compliance with the terms of the agreement. All
buffer strips shall be inspected by the local NRDs at least once during the term of the agreement.
The Department shall annually conduct spot checks for compliance with the Act, the regulations,
and the agreements. Any buffer strip determined by the Department to be in noncompliance shall
be referred to the NRD for action.
010 Administrative Costs. The funds from the Buffer
Strip Incentive Fund that are allocated for administrative costs shall be divided between the
Department and the NRDs. The funds allocated to the NRDs shall be distributed to each NRD
according to the number of approved applications from that district as a percentage of the total
approved applications from all of the NRDs.
011 Publications Adopted.
011.02 Natural Resources Conservation Service, Field Office Technical Guide
Conservation Practice Standard, Riparian Forest Buffer, Code 391, as adopted as NE-
T.G. Notice 454, Section IV, dated February 1997.
011.03 Nebraska Unified Watershed Assessment dated October 1, 1998, as
developed by the Watershed and Natural Resources Assessment Subcommittee of the USDA-
NRCS Nebraska State Technical Committee.
012 Annotation. Neb. Rev.
Stat. §§2-5101 to 2-5111 (Cum. Supp. 2002).
003.01 ACT shall mean the Buffer Strip Act.
003.10A Streams with perennial flow that are not solid blue lines on United
States Geological Survey (USGS) quadrangle maps;
003.11 WETLANDS shall mean areas capable of reducing damages by
sedimentation and associated pollutants that meet one of the following categories:
003.11A Permanently Flooded - water covers the land surface throughout the
year in all years;
004.01 All buffer strips shall conform to the requirements for filter strips or
riparian forest buffers as set forth in Natural Resources Conservation Service, Field Office
Technical Guide Conservation Practice Standards, Filter Strip, Code 393, as adopted as
NE-T.G. Notice 466, Section IV; or Riparian Forest Buffer, Code 391, as adopted as NE-
T.G. Notice 454, Section IV, which by this reference are hereby adopted as part of these
regulations. Such standards shall establish the criteria for appropriate location of the buffer strip,
width of the buffer strip, species of grass, forbs, trees and shrubs, seeding rates, plant spacing,
other establishment criteria, and the operation and maintenance of buffer strips, which by this
reference are made a part of these regulations.
005.01 An application to create a buffer strip may be submitted to the NRD
where the land is located at any time using the form prescribed by the Department.
006.01 Applications can be received by the NRD any time.
006.06A A buffer strip immediately adjacent to a perennial stream shall be
awarded nine points.
006.07 Using the prioritization under section 006.06, if sufficient funds are not
available to fund those applications with identical points, the Department shall first fund those
applications that create buffer strips at a lower cost per acre.
007.01 Dryland Cropland. Individual payments to persons under the Buffer Strip
Act shall be based on the county CRP soil rental rate for the three predominate soil types where
the buffer strip is located. On dryland cropland not enrolled in the CRP, CREP or any other
governmentally funded program, the payment rate per acre shall equal 120% of the CRP soil
rental plus $5, minus any payment from any other source. In no case may the payment from all
sources exceed $150 per acre.
007.02A On irrigated cropland, whether enrolled in the CRP or any other
program, the payment rate per acre shall be $150, minus payments received from all other
sources. In no case may the payment from all sources exceed $150 per acre.
008.01 The adoption of the buffer strip application as part of the agreement.
011.01 Natural Resources Conservation Service, Field Office Technical Guide
Conservation Practice Standard, Filter Strip, Code 393, as adopted as NE-T.G. Notice
466, Section IV, dated April 1998.