NWFWMD Announces New Cycle of Agricultural Cost-Share Funding to Protect Jackson Blue Springs

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 13, 2014
CONTACT: NWFWMD Public Information Office (850) 539-2663 or Lauren.Engel@yopmail.com

NWFWMD Announces New Cycle of Agricultural Cost-Share Funding to Protect Jackson Blue Springs

MARIANNA – The Northwest Florida Water Management District has launched the second cycle of a cost-share program designed to help agricultural producers improve water quality and reduce water use demands in and around Jackson Blue Spring.

The District’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2014-2015 budget includes $487,500 to fund eligible agricultural best management practices (BMPs) as part of the Jackson Blue Spring Agricultural Best Management Practice Program. This initiative builds on the success of the FY 2013-2014 cycle, which awarded more than $566,000 to 20 producers in Jackson County.

Both cycles of the cost-share program were funded as part of the State of Florida’s more than $100 million investment in springs projects over the past two years.

“The District is thankful to Governor Scott, the Florida Legislature, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and our local partners for helping us continue this successful program,” said Executive Director Jon Steverson. “These projects will play a vital role in the collaborative effort to protect the health of this first-magnitude spring system.”

This grant program will provide cost-share funding to agricultural producers for irrigation system improvements and equipment and tools to reduce fertilizer and pesticide use and improve water use efficiency—protecting both water quantity and quality.

“Public-private partnerships are absolutely essential for the protection of our springs,” said DEP Deputy Secretary of Water Policy and Ecosystem Restoration Drew Bartlett. “To protect spring water quality and quantity, we must deploy the most sophisticated efficiency tools in all agriculture practices in spring recharge areas.  This investment represents a significant step toward that goal.”

Under the BMP program, the NWFWMD will fund 75 percent of qualifying BMPs (up to a maximum of $56,250 for each producer), with the producers funding the remaining 25 percent.

Projects funded by the first cycle of the program have begun to be implemented, and include  subsurface drip irrigation, variable rate fertilizer applicators, fertigation equipment, irrigation system retrofits, and remote and zone control for irrigation systems.

The District is currently accepting applications from agricultural producers within the Jackson Blue Spring and Merritt’s Mill Pond groundwater contribution area for the second cycle of cost-share projects.

To be eligible, producers must be:
• Operating within the Jackson Blue Spring and Merritt’s Mill Pond Groundwater Contribution Area;
• Enrolled in the appropriate Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) Best Management Practice program; and
• In regulatory compliance with the District.

A full list of funded measures and an application form can be found on the District’s website at nwfwp.sgssys.info. Producers can contact Angela Chelette (850-539-2650) with any questions about the funding program.

Producers who are interested in obtaining funding can expedite their application by getting enrolled or updating their enrollment in the FDACS BMP program as soon as possible by contacting Diana Thurman, FDACS Field Representative at (850-875-7160) or visiting the FDACS at www.freshfromflorida.com.

The District recommends that producers who want to upgrade irrigation equipment contact Mark Miles of the Northwest Florida Mobile Irrigation Lab (MIL) at (850-482-0388) to schedule a system evaluation. Having these two items complete will allow an application to move forward more quickly.