Iowa Admin. Code r. 571-22.6 - [Effective until 6/5/2024] Shelterbelts

This rule delineates eligibility and procedures for establishing shelterbelts for winter wildlife habitat.

(1) Eligibility. The program is available statewide.

a. To be eligible for cost assistance, landowners must enter into a written agreement with the department specifying the obligations of both parties.

b. Rescinded lAB 1/24/90, effective 2/28/90.

c. Assistance for replacement of trees or shrubs suffering normal mortality in a shelterbelt previously cost-shared by the department will be available in any county currently or previously eligible subject to conditions in subrule 22.6(6), paragraph"c. "

(2) Application for assistance. Applications will be accepted only from those eligible as noted above.

a. Applications must be submitted on forms furnished by the department.

b. Applications must be submitted by February 15. The application period may be extended until all available funds have been committed.

(3) Project review and selection. Project applications will be reviewed separately for each county to determine the projects which will be eligible for cost assistance.

a. Projects will be reviewed by the department wildlife biologist and the soil conservation service district conservationist for each county, who will then recommend that the commission enter into agreements with the successful applicants.

b. Projects will be selected on the basis of site suitability, location within the county and the availability of nearby wildlife habitat to determine those projects with the greatest chance of benefiting wildlife populations.

c. Rescinded lAB 1/24/90, effective 2/28/90.

d. Priority for rating will be given in the following order:

(1)Establishment of new shelterbelts or enlargement of existing shelterbelts in which department funds are used to supplement other funding sources.

(2)Establishment of new shelterbelts or enlargement of existing shelterbelts using only department funding.

(3)Renovations of cost-shared shelterbelts which meet the criteria of subrule 22.6(5), paragraph "b."

(4)Enlargements of previously cost-shared shelterbelts above minimum specifications, subject to limitations in subrule 22.6(5), paragraph"c, " subparagraphs (1) to (4).

(4) Contract agreements. The director is authorized to enter into agreements with landowners in order to carry out the purposes of this program.

a. Agreement forms will be provided by the department. They shall explicitly state the terms of the agreement, including but not limited to, requirements for shelterbelt size, configuration, species composition of trees, ground preparation, weed control and management in subsequent years. Terms of the agreement and copies of the contract will be available from the department for examination.

b. Cost-sharing assistance will not be provided unless an agreement has been signed by both parties prior to the inception of the project.

c. Contract periods will not be approved for any term less than ten years in duration.

d. Contracts may be amended by mutual agreement of both parties.

(5) Specifications and guidelines. Shelterbelts must conform to the following specifications to be eligible for cost-share assistance.

a. New shelterbelts must meet at least the following minimum guidelines:

(1)Eight rows of planting stock with at least 100 feet per row in an L-shaped shelterbelt, 150 feet per row in a unidirectional block.

(2)Two rows of shrubs or trees windward, followed by a minimum 50-foot snowcatch leeward of the first two rows. The snowcatch may be used to plant nesting cover, food plots, Christmas tree plantations or may be cropped.

(3)Two rows of shrubs leeward of the snowcatch, followed by four rows of dense conifers.

(4)Additional rows of dense shrubs may be planted interior to conifers for screening. See subrule 22.6(5), paragraph"c, " subparagraphs (1) to (4) for restrictions on additional rows.

(5)Species of conifers, shrubs, and deciduous trees which may be grown in shelterbelts will be designated by the department, as well as size of stock and conditions of culture.

(6)Shelterbelts must be at least 50 feet from an occupied residence.

b. Renovations or improvements of existing shelterbelts not previously cost-shared must meet at least minimum specifications for new shelterbelts outlined in paragraph"a " of this subrule.

c. Maximum specifications for which cost-sharing will be allowed are as follows:

(1)Fourteen rows of planting stock with a maximum of 400 feet per unidirectional row.

(2)For each additional row over eight, one row must be planted with an approved conifer

(3)Snowcatch requirement is dropped for shelterbelts of at least ten rows and meeting all other requirements in subrule 22.6(5), paragraph"a," subparagraphs (1) to (6) and paragraph"c," subparagraph (2).

(4)In a 14-row shelterbelt, one row of deciduous trees may be black walnut for eventual harvest.

d. Planning and design for newly established shelterbelts, renovations, and enlargements, and replacement of trees in a previously cost-shared shelterbelt, and deviations from the listed specifications, must be approved by the department's wildlife biologist and may require consultation with the department's district forester and U.S. Department of Agriculture Soil Conservation Service (SCS) district conservationist.

e. Planting sites should be prepared with seedbed conditions the same as for com. Sod planting or other exceptions may be allowed only by the department wildlife biologist, and may require consultation with the district forester and SCS district conservationist.

f. The following maintenance requirements are in effect for the contract period:

(1)All competing vegetation must be controlled within three feet of each tree and shrub for the first three years of the contract. Control may be by chemicals, mulching, or mechanical means.

(2)Plantings must be protected from livestock, poultry, and rodents by repellents, fencing, trapping, or other effective means.

(3)Cooperators must use whatever means possible to protect plantings from herbicide drift from adjacent fields.

(6) Cost-sharing rates. The department will provide cost-sharing assistance during the first year of the contract to establish new shelterbelts or renovate existing shelterbelts to bring them to minimum standards for size, composition, and configuration.

a. New establishments and enlargements. During the initial establishment year for new shelterbelts and enlargements of existing shelterbelts, the department will pay 75 percent of the cost of establishment, not to exceed $1600 per eight-row planting.

(1)Additional rows over the minimum will be cost-shared at the same rate with a ceiling limit of $200 per additional row.

(2)Total rows cost-shared will not exceed 14.

b. Upon mutual agreement of the cooperator and the department, tree planting by the department or its designee may be substituted for all or part of the cost-sharing assistance. Standardized rates for labor and machinery operation will be used to calculate the value of the tree planting operation when determining cost-share payments.

c. Renovations and restorations. Upon recommendation by department wildlife biologists, cost-sharing of tree replacement is permissible where age, disease, drought, insect, or mammal damage has reduced the effectiveness of existing shelterbelts.

(1)Cost-sharing for these reasons will be at 50 percent of planting stock costs not to exceed $1000. All minimum specifications must be met.

(2)If renovation is needed due to cooperator neglect, no cost-sharing will be allowed.

d. Limitations to total cost-share assistance do not preclude use of cost-sharing funds from other governmental entities or private conservation groups to defray cost to the landowner Where more than one cost-sharing entity is involved, the total cost-share to the landowner cannot exceed 100 percent of the cost of establishment, enlargement, or renovation.

e. If funds are limited, cooperators are limited to one department cost-shared shelterbelt within a three-year period, except for renovations as listed in subrule 22.6(6), paragraph"c. "

f. Three years following establishment of an eight-row shelterbelt, cost-sharing to enlarge the shelterbelt will be available subject to the following limitations:

(1)Established rows must exhibit reasonable growth rates and good care by the cooperator.

(2)Added rows will be considered a new planting under guidelines existing at that time.

(3)Such enlargements are subject to priorities established in subrule 22.6(3), paragraph"d," subparagraphs (1) to (4).

(7) Reimbursements. Cooperators shall submit billings for reimbursements on forms provided by the department.

a. Billings shall be submitted prior to September 1 each year

b. Billings shall include documentation of costs incurred for planting stock.

c. Reimbursements will not be made unless the landowner has fulfilled obligations as specified in the contract.

d. Billings will be approved or disapproved by the wildlife biologist after inspection of the project.

Notes

Iowa Admin. Code r. 571-22.6